Former New England Patriots defensive end and current Atlanta Falcon Matthew Judon told Kayla Burton on NBC Sports Boston’s “Sports Sunday” that the Patriots “never sat down” to discuss a new contract, and that negotiations were “always through text message and phone calls.”
“I feel like we just never sat down and really came to the table as a meeting, so I think that’s the biggest point,” said Judon. “It’s like, they kind of didn’t know where I was at, we kind of didn’t know where they was at. It was like, you know - it just was always through text message and phone calls.
“We just never sat down and actually talked about it. I think that was the biggest kind of disconnect.”
Throughout training camp, the veteran pass rusher was vocal about wanting a contract extension, as he is set to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season. There was an impromptu press conference, a non-participant practice day that resulted in him reportedly being kicked out of practice, and a constant air of “what’s this guy gonna do next” as camp rolled along.
That all came to an end last Wednesday, as the Patriots traded the 32-year-old to Atlanta for a 2025 third-round draft pick. If his contract remains the same, he’ll make $6.5 million playing for the Falcons this season - the final year of his deal.
When asked by Burton if he asked the Patriots to have in-person meetings about his contract, he said, “For sure, I asked. I sent those messages to my agents, and I asked personally. But that ain’t kind of where we left off.”
On Tuesday’s edition of The Greg Hill Show, Courtney Cox questioned the validity of Judon’s comments with Burton.
“Didn’t he have a sit down, face-to-face meeting with Jerod Mayo?” said Courtney, in reference to comments previously made by the Patriots head coach. “Like, didn’t that happen?”
Greg Hill also had questions.
“I thought he submitted a whole proposal on what his deal would look like,” said Greg, in reference to comments made by Judon in a post-practice press conference earlier in training camp. “I think Judon, unfortunately, is expecting that there’s going to be a massive hue and outcry from New England fans that he’s not here.
“I think it’s kind of time for him to move on."
Jermaine Wiggins thinks it’s pretty simple.
“Mayo told us what it was,” said Wiggy. “He wanted a new contract, they didn’t want to give him one. That’s it. He probably said, ‘Here’s what I’m looking to get.’ And they were like, ‘Well, OK, but you’re playing under what you have.’”
It remains to be seen if Judon will, indeed, play under his current deal with the Falcons, as the 2024 NFL regular season rapidly approaches.