30 Mind-Blowing Facts About Matthew Judon Every Fan Must Know

16 December 2021, 11:52 am EST By Ruby Karnick

Matthew Judon, one of the best linebackers in the NFL, is famous for being competitive, brash and punishing in the field. But, he didn’t dream of an NFL career as a kid, and started playing only because his older brother did. He was one of the elite pass rushers in college football. His journey to NFL was not an easy one, as his collegiate career was filled with injuries. Here are some really interesting facts about the footballer that will make you love him more:

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Judon signed a four-year, $56 million contract, with $18 million signing bonus, with the New England Patriots on March 19, 2021.
Following his debut with Patriots, he surpassed his career high in sacks, only after 11 games, recording an all new career-high stat.
Following the change in NFL uniform rules in 2021, which allowed defensive linemen to wear single-digit numbers, he chose 9 for his uniform number with New England Patriots.
He was selected in the fifth round (146th overall) by the Baltimore Ravens, during the 2016 NFL Draft, making him the third edge rusher drafted by the Ravens in 2016.
On May 5, 2016, the Baltimore Ravens signed him to a four-year, $2.59 million contract with a signing bonus of $255,736.

Matthew Judon was born on August 15, 1992 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in a single parent household. He is one of ten children.
He has spoken very little about his parents and his early life, especially about his father. He was raised by his mother and stepfather in Louisiana.
He has six brothers and three sisters. His mother and stepfather worked at General Motors. All his brothers played various sports.
He initially started playing football, just because his elder brother Michael played the game. He had in fact looked at the game as “something to do” in his free time.
But before coming to high school, football became his main interest. Still, with coaches trying new players in his position, constantly, he became too motivated to work harder.

While playing for the Grand Valley State University in Michigan, he wore the number 9, in an effort to honor his nine siblings. His college career was plagued with several injuries.
He received an invitation to the East–West Shrine Game, but was unable to play after an arthroscopy discovered what was characterized as a "tweaked meniscus."
Judon was one of the sixty-five defensive linemen to receive an invitation to the NFL combine. In fact, he is the first player from Grand Valley State to have received an invite in two years.
At the NFL Combine, he showed athleticism and strength, finishing top among defensive linemen in the 40-yard dash (fifth), bench press (fifth), and vertical jump (fourth).
Team representatives and scouts from 26 NFL Teams attended his Grand Valley State’s pro day as he ran positional drills and opted to stand on his combine numbers.

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Throughout the pre-draft process, he had private workouts and meetings with the Carolina Panthers, New England Patriots, Arizona Cardinals, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Philadelphia Eagles.
He was projected to be a fourth round pick by NFL draft experts and scouts, despite his great combination of strength and athleticism.
Since he played Division II football in college, the teams were reportedly skeptical over his ability to transfer his skills to the professional game. There were also concerns related to his history of injuries.
The Baltimore Ravens opted to make him an outside linebacker, since their 3-4 scheme would better suit him at that position over defensive end.
Head coach John Harbaugh named him the backup weakside linebacker behind veterans Terrell Suggs and Za'Darius Smith to begin the regular season.

His professional debut with the Baltimore Ravens was in the season-opener against the Buffalo Bills, in which he assisted on one tackle in their 13-7 victory.
He finished the 2016 season with 27 combined tackles (12 solo), four sacks, and two pass deflections in 14 games and zero starts.
Matthew was named the Baltimore Ravens' starting strongside linebacker, beating out rookie Tyus Bowser, to begin the 2017 season.
In his first career start in the Baltimore Ravens' season-opener against the Cincinnati Bengals, he made one solo tackle and defended a pass, leading the Ravens to 20-0 victory.
He finished the 2017 season playing in all 16 games with 12 starts, recording 60 combined tackles (50 solo), eight sacks, three passes defensed and two forced fumbles.

During the 2018 season, he played in 16 games with eight starts, he scored seven sacks along with 44 combined tackles, three passes defensed, and a forced fumble.
In fact, his eight sacks in the 2017 season and seven sacks in the 2018 season, led to him finishing second on the team.
In week 11 game against the Houston Texans in the 2019 season, Judon recorded a team high 7 tackles and 2 sacks on Deshaun Watson.
The Ravens placed the franchise tag on him on March 13, 2020. He signed the one-year, $16.808 million franchise tender, on May 28, 2020.
In Week 15 against the Jacksonville Jaguars during the 2020 season, he recorded a sack on Gardner Minshew II in the end zone for a safety during the 40–14 win.
Matthew Judon Net Worth: $16.5 Million