Matthew Judon is back on the recruiting trail.
The Patriots’ star pass-rusher reached out to Aaron Donald via Twitter this week, probing the three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year’s interest in coming to New England. In response to one of Donald’s tweets about his plans for next season, Judon remarked that “nobody [is] wearing 99 in New England.”
He’s just saying …
At first glance, the idea of Donald joining the Patriots seems outlandish. He has two years remaining on his three-year, $95 million deal, and remains one of the best defensive players in the NFL.
But the Rams are coming off a disastrous 5-12 season, and might be looking to start a rebuild. In that case, Donald, 31, would appear to be a prime trade candidate.
In a recent interview with NFL Media’s Peter Scharger, Chris Long, who played with Donald in Los Angeles and also played for the Patriots, said he would love to see Donald in another uniform next season.
Of course, the likelihood of Donald getting dealt to the Patriots remains low. He has a full no-trade clause, and it’s uncertain how excited he would be to join an 8-9 Patriots team that’s missed the playoffs in two of the last three seasons.
But still, it’s fun to dream. Judon finished with 15.5 sacks this season, and Josh Uche garnered 11.5. Adding Donald to the mix would give the Patriots one of the most fearsome pass rushes in the league.
We’ll see if Judon keeps the pressure on.
