Matthew Judon often jokes around on his social media accounts, but a couple of cryptic posts this week might signal serious questions about the star pass rusher’s future with the Patriots.
The four-time Pro Bowl linebacker is entering the final year of his contract with New England and when a fan tweeted in favor of extending Judon, he replied, “Ion think that’s about to happen.”
The eight-year NFL veteran followed that up by posting a GIF of the cartoon character SpongeBob SquarePants with the caption, “Ight imma head out.”
According to NESN, “Judon has a history of being quite the jokester on social media. Therefore, his posts have a solid probability of meaning nothing.”
Still, the 31-year-old Judon, who played the first five seasons of his NFL career with the Ravens, agreed last year to a restructuring of the four-year, $54.5 million deal he signed with New England in 2021.
He has been seeking a raise from the $7.5 million salary he is slated to earn in 2024 — albeit with a cap hit of $14.7 million, according to Spotrac.
But that doesn’t appear to be a priority for the Pats’ new front office after longtime head coach Bill Belichick was replaced by Jerod Mayo in January.
Judon appeared in only four games last season due to a biceps injury, but he’d totaled 28 sacks, 120 combined tackles, 28 tackles for a loss, and 53 quarterback hits over the previous two years.
Provided he stays with the Patriots for the 2024 season, Judon will be rejoining a team in transition with the post-Belichick era set to begin.
New England drafted North Carolina’s Drake Maye to be its quarterback of the future after the former first-round pick Mac Jones era led the team to zero postseason wins.
Judon and the Patriots could be in for a rough season in an AFC East featuring expected contenders in the Bills, Dolphins and Jets.