How Matthew Judon Explained Eyebrow-Raising Workload In Patriots Camp

FOXBORO, Mass. — Fans in attendance for the first two days of Patriots training camp watched Matthew Judon take the field in his trademark red sweatshirt — then didn’t see much more of the Pro Bowl edge rusher.

New England’s best defensive player spent most of Days 1 and 2 of camp working on his own. He’d participate in warmups, then split off from his teammates to run through conditioning drills on a side field. He didn’t take a single rep in 7-on-7 or 11-on-11 drills.

Those limitations sparked chatter that Judon might be unhappy with his contract and engaging in a “hold-in” — reporting to camp to avoid being fined by choosing not to participate in most aspects of practice.

Judon ranks third in the NFL in sacks since joining the Patriots in 2021, yet his average annual contract value ranks 20th among edge rushers, per OverTheCap. He has two years remaining on his current deal, and NBC Sports Boston’s Phil Perry reported Friday the soon-to-be 31-year-old would “like his contract adjusted.”

But according to Judon, his limited activity early in camp was part of an agreement between himself, the Patriots coaches and the training staff to focus on conditioning before taking on a full practice workload.

“Me and the guys talked about it, and we both felt like, ‘All right, we can do that for two days,’ ” Judon said after Friday’s practice. “Then we can ease into things. I’m in my eighth year. I think y’all know what I do on Sundays — occasionally Saturdays, Thursdays, maybe Mondays. And we’ve seen that. We’ve got 90 players out here right now, so that was kind of in the talks. We’ve got 90 players. Let’s wait a little bit.”

Judon did up his level of participation on Day 3 of camp, staying on the main field for the duration of practice. He watched much of the practice from the sideline but did take a handful of reps in 11-on-11s.

“But I’m happy that I’m here. I’m happy that I’m a Patriot. And then wherever that goes, it goes.”

Matthew Judon

As for how he feels about his contract, Judon wouldn’t discuss that in his post-practice media scrum. He did say he loves playing for the Patriots and is happy to be on the field with his teammates.

“I’m happy to be here, man,” said Judon, who reiterated that he wants to finish his career with New England. “I’m definitely not going to talk about contracts with y’all. Y’all some snitches. But I’m happy that I’m here. I’m happy that I’m a Patriot. And then wherever that goes, it goes. The market changes every day. We’ve seen it the first day of training camp, a whole bunch of people got paid, the market changes every day. But I will not talk about contracts.”

Judon, a Pro Bowler in each of the last four seasons, is set to make $11 million in salary in 2023 and carry the Patriots’ highest salary cap hit at $18.1 million.

To his point about players recently being paid, Bengals edge rusher Trey Hendrickson on Thursday signed a one-year extension with Cincinnati that gave him an additional $21 million. The 28-year-old Hendrickson had eight sacks last season, tied for 30th in the NFL. Judon had 15 1/2, trailing only Nick Bosa, Haason Reddick and Myles Garrett.

“I actually know Trey personally, and I’m excited for him,” Judon said. “I don’t think he’s had a bad year yet. So for him to get paid and for his organization to realize like, ‘We want to keep this guy around here for longer,’ that’s good for him as a friend and as a brother to me. I’m happy for Trey.”

The Patriots currently have the most available cap space in the NFL for the 2024 season, so they can afford to extend impact players like Judon if the sides can agree on term and value. New England reached new deals for linebacker Ja’Whaun Bentley and wide receiver DeVante Parker before camp and have engaged in extension talks with representatives for Judon’s running mate, Josh Uche, who’s entering the final year of his rookie contract. Fellow 2020 draftees Kyle Dugger and Mike Onwenu also are eligible for extensions.