FOXBOROUGH — Since arriving in 2021, Matthew Judon has been the best player on the Patriots roster.
The edge rusher has been voted to back-to-back Pro Bowls, finished ninth in the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year voting last season, and has more than lived up to the big contract Bill Belichick signed him to. In 38 games with the Patriots, Judon has registered 32 sacks and 33 tackles for loss.
He’s out for the foreseeable future due to a bicep tear, and on Tuesday morning, Judon’s defensive coaches said New England will miss even more than his on-field production.
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“Without Judon out there, he reminds me of myself as a player,” Jerod Mayo said. “When guys are down, you try to pick them up. When guys are up, you just try to remain neutral and bring them back to reality. So it absolutely stinks not having him on the field, but he’ll be around the team.”
So who can fill that type of emotional role?
“I don’t think one person can really fill the void of being goofy and being able to pick people up,” Mayo said. “It’s across the board. I’m a little goofy myself. So we’re just moving forward.”
The Patriots will likely be without Judon through Thanksgiving, as December appears to be a best case scenario goal given the severity of the edge rusher’s injury. Fellow linebackers coach Steve Belichick echoed Mayo’s sentiment: Judon’s absence extends far beyond the stat sheet.
“I think it’s more than just the pass rush. It’s the energy,” Steve Belichick said. “The positivity on the sideline, in the building – that’s a tough loss for us when we lost Judon. Yeah, the pass rush but even early downs in the run game and stuff like that, it’s tough. It’s part of the game. It’s very unfortunate. It’s a guy who can’t be replaced. Can’t cry a bout it. Have to move on. I have a lot of respect for Judon and his whole game, his mindset, his personality and leadership. He’ll be missed.
“Next man up. Next guy has to be ready to go. You can’t replace somebody like that. We had the same exact conversation about Devin (McCourty) all offseason – ‘What are you guys going to do? Are you going to play with 10 people?’ The answer is, ‘No.’ Somebody has to play out there. You can’t replace a player like that, he’s one of our best players, one of the best players in the league. It sucks, but it’s part of football. You just have to move on and roll with the punches.”
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