Where Matthew Judon Stands In Defensive Player Of The Year Race

Thanks to already having a career year just 10 games into the season, New England Patriots edge rusher Matthew Judon is a viable contender to win NFL Defensive Player of the Year.

The seven-year pro has wreaked havoc in opposing backfields, recording a career-best and league-leading 13 sacks after tallying 1 1/2 sacks in New England’s Week 11 win over the New York Jets.

Piling up sacks goes a long way in determining the Defensive Player of the Year as last year, Pittsburgh Steelers star T.J. Watt took home the hardware after securing the most sacks in the league with 22 1/2.

Judon has certainly put himself in terrific position to claim the honor for the first time in his career. His high level of production has made oddsmakers view him as a clear frontrunner, but not the favorite. That distinction goes to Dallas Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons.

Parsons is the only player with better odds than Judon to receive the coveted recognition. Here are the five players with the best odds on the DraftKings Sportsbook betting sheet:

Micah Parsons -350
Matthew Judon +650
Nick Bosa +800
Chris Jones +3000
Maxx Crosby +3000

Parsons is a heavy favorite as he’s an instrumental and versatile piece in a Cowboys defense that allows the fewest points in the league at 16.7 per game. Parson has 47 tackles and 10 sacks in his second season in the NFL to go along with three forced fumbles.

Judon presents much better value than Parsons with +650 odds, meaning a $100 bet on Judon would net a total of $750. The biggest question mark surrounding Judon is can he keep up this type of production over the stretch run? He couldn’t last year, fading over the last month of the regular season as he registered zero sacks in New England’s final three regular-season games.

The Patriots have spotted the playing time of the three-time Pro Bowler more this season in an effort to keep him fresher and to try to prevent the downhill slide for reoccurring.

That should help Judon over the final seven games, and if he can continue his torrid sack pace, he could be looking at adding a piece of hardware to his trophy case.