Along with the New England Patriots quarterback dilemma, the story revolving around Matthew Judon has stood out as one of the most eye-catching storylines from this team’s training camp events.

After consistent back-and-forth contract negotiations have been endured between both sides during this offseason, we sit at the beginning of August with no new terms in place and the star pass rusher still entering 2024 on an expiring deal.

The lack of an agreement in place has effectively resulted in some pre-season NFL drama between the Patriots and Judon, ultimately leading to an “animated” conversation happening between the New England edge and coach Jerod Mayo, and a camp absence from Judon coming the day following.

Needless to say, it was an unpredictable week at Patriots HQ, but amid the uncertainty, it seems we have a new (and positive) update to the current dilemma between Judon and New England.

According to Patriots insider Mike Reiss of ESPN, since returning to practice on Thursday, Judon has attended each of New England’s past three training camp practices with full participation, though he’s opted to keep a bit more reserved in the process.

“Judon, who has said he doesn’t believe his contract reflects his value, has since returned after being away from the team for two days and has fully participated in three practices. The situation has cooled in the view of multiple sources close to it, but it isn’t completely resolved, as Judon’s contract remains unchanged. Judon has kept a lower profile since his return. He walks up the back steps to the practice fields, no longer plays catch with fans before practices, and has yet to be available to reporters.”Mike Reiss on Matthew Judon

Judon remains in the final year of the existing contract he signed when joining aboard in Foxboro, leaving his future past the 2024 season wide-open. Both he and the Patriots have remained consistent in their sentiment to hammer out a new deal in the long term, but the two stay at a stalemate when it comes to putting pen to paper. The return to the practice field is a telling sign that the situation is moving in the right direction, but the work is far from finished.

In the weeks leading up to the beginning of the regular season, the Patriots must remain diligent in working out a new deal for their star edge rusher, especially with the potentially lengthy injury status of Christian Barmore disrupting this front seven for 2024. Judon is a focal point of this team’s pass rush, and the last thing this team needs to start the year is to mitigate another loss on the defensive line.

The Patriots have ample cap room and mutual interest to get a new contract to come to form, yet the clock remains ticking for something to be finalized. Stay posted to see how both Judon and the New England work to hash out a fresh deal over the coming weeks.