Patriots extension talks with Matthew Judon just took a dramatic turn

One of the ongoing stories following the Patriots this offseason has centered around Matthew Judon and contract negotiations regarding an extension. He was one of the many players going into the 2024 season on the last year of their current contract, and he was expected to be at the front of line to receive an extension.

However, Eliot Wolf has taken a much different approach this offseason, re-signing and extending several players but not Judon. While several players who will remain with the Patriots beyond this upcoming season were worthy of the new contracts, none have been more productive or integral to the team's success since arriving in Foxboro than Judon.

Because of that, the continued reluctance from Wolf to strike a deal with the pass rusher remains front and center the closer we get to the regular season. A dramatic scene at training camp a couple of weeks ago seemed to solidify that talks were not going well, which was then followed up by an apparent holdout from Judon.

Since he returned to practice, things have appeared to be at ease despite the lack of extension. Now that the preseason continues, it seems less likely that a deal will be made before Week 1, hence the latest news from NFL insider Jeremy Fowler.

Patriots extension talks with Matthew Judon might be heading in the wrong direction

According to Fowler, several teams have called the Patriots about trading for Judon, since it doesn't look like an extension is coming any time soon.

Although receiving some sort of compensation for a player now that they might just allow to leave in free agency next year would be great, it's not an ideal situation for Mayo's plans to maintain a dominant defense moving forward.

If the intention is not to extend Judon due to his age or whatever salary he is hoping for, then trading him now makes a lot of sense. It's clear the new regime wants to build the team through the draft and develop younger guys into the team they want, which is not exactly where Judon is at in his career.

However, moving on from the most productive pass rusher since Chandler Jones nearly ten years ago doesn't seem like the brightest idea.

This will certainly be a situation worth monitoring, especially since little appears to be going on between Judon and the Patriots. Despite his pleas to remain on the team until he retires, his inevitable fate might be ending his career elsewhere if a team makes an aggressive offer.

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