Matthew Judon Explains How Bill Belichick’s Exit Impacted Patriots

Matthew Judon believes there was a palpable shift when the Patriots parted ways with one of the most important figures in franchise history.

New England cut ties with Bill Belichick in early January, ending one of the longest and most successful head coaching runs the league has ever seen. The twilight years of Belichick’s Patriots tenure weren’t very fruitful, though, as the team hasn’t won a playoff game since Super Bowl LIII.

Matthew Judon, who’s been with New England since 2021, enjoyed his time playing under Belichick. But the star pass-rusher understood the legend’s exit and could sense a positive change upon the decision.

“I think with him leaving, it’s just new energy and new life in the building,” Judon said Wednesday on NFL Network’s “Good Morning Football.” “Sometimes it’s just time. I think it was just one of those times.”

Robert Kraft and company replaced Belichick with Jerod Mayo, who played for the Patriots from 2008 through 2015 and has been on the team’s coaching staff since 2019. Judon commended the Patriots for choosing an internal candidate, especially one with so much institutional knowledge.

“I think with the hire of Mayo and bringing in somebody that’s been there for those years that kind of understands player perspective and coaching and how Coach Belichick ran the system — bringing in somebody like that instead of someone outside that didn’t know at all kind of helped us,” Judon said. “It kind of helped because I think Mayo’s seen it go one way and he’s kind of trying to get it going a different way. So, we got new life. We got new expectations.”

Judon expects Patriots players will want to “run through a brick wall” for Mayo once they start rolling in the preseason. New England all but surely will endure growing pains under its first-year head coach, but early buy-in from players should excite and encourage fans.