ARLINGTON, Texas – It looks like the Patriots are going to be without their best player for a while.
According to a source, Matthew Judon suffered a lower bicep tendon tear in the fourth quarter of the Patriots loss to the Dallas Cowboys. The plan is for Judon to have an MRI on Monday to determine the extent of the injury. Until that happens, the Patriots won’t know the timeline on the Pro Bowlers return.
The injury occurred at 13:45 of the fourth quarter when Judon was trying to get around a Cowboys offensive lineman. Judon was visibly in pain. When he left the field, his right arm hung low. The Patriots initially ruled him as ‘doubtful’ with an elbow injury.
“Devastating. But he was in good spirits, and we’ll be with him mentally throughout the year. I know he will be with us too,” Deatrich Wise said of Judon. “There will be some guys behind him that will be stepping up and filling his spot.”
A ruptured bicep tendon can take a player months to recover from and has ended players seasons before.
The loss for the Patriots certainly is devastating. Judon has been the Patriots best player dating back to the past three seasons. He’s a game-changer on defense and represents one of the few Pro Bowl players on the roster in Foxborough.
Judon has made the last four Pro Bowl teams, including the last two with the Patriots. In 2021, he finished with a career-high 12.5 sacks in New England. He bettered that number to 15.5 sacks last year and finished ninth in the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year voting.
In four games this season, Judon leads the Patriots with four sacks and nine quarterback hits. Josh Uche is second on the Patriots in sacks (two) and quarterback hits (three) and will be one of the players the team needs to step up.
The Patriots also lost cornerback Christian Gonzalez on Sunday to a shoulder injury.
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Story by Mark Daniels, masslive.com.