Patriots were reportedly ‘just sick of’ Matthew Judon prior to trade

Patriots

“They felt like there was public-facing Judo, and then there was Judo behind the scenes.”

There may have been more behind Matthew Judon’s defection from the Patriots than his contract situation, according to reports Sports Illustrated reporter Albert Breer.

Breer, speaking on “Boston Sports Tonight” with Michael Felger, said star running back Judon was “not as well-liked” by the Patriots front office as many might have thought.

“That was really part of it at the end, was they were just tired of him,” Breer said. “They felt there was public-facing Judon, and then there was Judon behind the scenes.”

The behind-the-scenes judo, Breer said, had become a “bit of an operator” and his act had “worn thin” with people inside the building.

“That’s not to say he’s a bad guy,” Breer said. “But there was some of this again, like this kind of cheerleader stuff on social media, that a lot of people in the organization would roll their eyes at.”

When Judon “became a problem” this summer, the Patriots’ mindset changed to what they could do to move him off the roster. As they try to build a new program, Breer said, they didn’t want Judon’s situation to “hang over” them.

Breer said the Patriots asked Judon if he wanted to go to Atlanta or Chicago, and he chose the Falcons. New England traded him for a 2025 third-round pick.