FLOWERY BRANCH — The Falcons, attempting to address their pass-rushing needs, sent a 2025 third-round pick to New England for Matthew Judon on Wednesday, the team confirmed.
Judon, 31, has 66.5 sacks over his NFL career in 114 games with the Ravens and Patriots. ESPN originally reported the trade.
Judon, who’s 6-foot-3 and 270 pounds, was drafted in the fifth round (146th) of the 2016 draft by the Ravens out of Grand Valley State.
He played for the Ravens for five seasons and has been with the Patriots for the past three. He has played in 114 NFL games and made 82 starts.
He had a career-high 15.5 sacks in 2022. He has been named to the Pro Bowl four times and was the Associated Press’ defensive player of the year in 2022.
The Falcons have not had a player with double-digit sacks since Vic Beasley had 15.5 sacks in the 2016 season.
The Falcons’ plan to spruce up their pass rush took a hit when rookie outside linebacker Bralen Trice was placed on injured reserve Sunday.
The Falcons have been in the market since the trading deadline, looking for players to help with the pass rush. Trice, who was selected in the third round of the draft out of Washington, was injured late in the second quarter against the Dolphins in the exhibition opener Friday.
Trice was drafted by the Falcons with the 74th overall pick. Trice had a clear path to playing in the outside linebacker rotation and possibly to the starting lineup.
Defensive end James Smith-Williams, who has been a reserve with the Commanders with seven career sacks, was expected to get a closer look in the first/second down role. He will now compete with Judon for playing time.
Lorenzo Carter, Bradlee Anae and DeAngelo Malone are the other outside linebackers on the roster. Carter has been working with the first-team defense.
Anae, who played at Utah, was a fifth-round pick by the Cowboys in 2020. He has also spent time with the Jets.
Malone, who was a third-round pick in 2022, got some work at inside linebacker last season. Malone, who played at Cedar Grove and Western Kentucky, is a better fit for the Falcons’ 3-4 defense.
The drafting of Trice was the Falcons’ answer to those who thought they should have taken a pass-rusher with the eighth overall pick in the draft. Instead, the Falcons drafted quarterback Michael Penix Jr., who is set to back up starter Kirk Cousins.
The two top pass rushers in the draft were available with the eighth pick. However, UCLA defensive end Laitu Latu went to the Colts with the 15th pick and Alabama’s Dallas Turner went to Minnesota with the 17th overall pick.
The Falcons tried to add edge rusher and four-time Pro Bowl player Danielle Hunter in free agency, but he signed a two-year, $49 million deal with the Texans.
At the trading deadline, the Falcons also tried to trade for Montez Sweat, who was dealt by Washington to Chicago.
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