Patriots just made a big mistake with the Jahlani Tavai contract extension

The 2024 offseason was bound to be filled with many re-signings for the Patriots, as they entered free agency with 22 players set to hit the open market. Many of them had become key pieces of the roster since their initial signing, making it even more crucial the new regime ensured their return.

The leading names that felt like no-brainers to return were mainly on defense, led by Christian Barmore, Kyle Dugger, and Matthew Judon, two of whom have already been re-signed.

That leaves Judon as the remaining player looking for an extension. He's made it very clear he wants to return to the Patriots for the 2024 season and beyond, even stating he would love to retire in New England if given the opportunity.

Considering he's already cemented his legacy among some of the greatest defensive players in the organization's history and is on his way to having another career year before suffering an injury last year, there's no reason for a player of his caliber to remain unsigned beyond this season this late into the offseason.

There have been rumblings that an extension was nearing, but the Patriots' latest contract extension, given to Jahlani Tavai on Tuesday, seems to indicate that a deal with Judon is not as close as fans would have hoped just weeks before training camp.

Patriots latest re-signing draws more concern regarding Matthew Judon's status

Although the Tavai re-signing is a good decision, which ESPN's Mike Reiss reported on Tuesday morning, it creates concern surrounding Judon's status with the team moving forward.

The ideal scenario would be to get an extension done before training camp in a few weeks, avoiding a potential holdout by the linebacker., even more so since it appears they'll also be dealing with questions regarding Davon Godchaux.

Starting training camp with two of their best defensive players not participating over their contract status isn't a great way for the new regime to start the Jerod Mayo era in Foxboro. It becomes even more worrisome when considering how many players have received new contracts thus far, which has reportedly been a focus of Wolf's.

You'd think players like Judon would be at the top of the list to extend and would've been prioritized at the height of the offseason. But we're now in the midst of July and still waiting to hear the news, yet we're hearing about others' deals instead.

Hopefully, Tavai's new contract doesn't mean Judon's has been put on the back burner, nor does it indicate a lack of negotiations because that would be a much worse development.

It would be wise for Wolf to strike a deal sooner rather than later, preferably before training camp in three weeks, so we'll have to cross our fingers that it happens ASAP.

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