The Detroit Lions enter Week 4 playing decent football, but there’s certainly an avenue for them to go out and make another move. Unlike the 0-3 Miami Dolphins, the Lions are in a spot to once again make the postseason. Given where the Dolphins stand, there’s reason to believe they could help out Detroit in some way. Whether it be moving out from Jaelan Phillips or another defensive player, Miami has multiple players it could look to move to a team like Detroit.
When examining potential options for the Lions to pursue, Marlowe Alter of the Detroit Free Press named Matthew Judon as an option. While Judon would be a decent pickup for the Lions, given what he’s done throughout his career, it’s fair to note that the Dolphins haven’t played him much early on in the year.
“The Lions’ interest in Judon may be more realistic than Phillips, because the Lions were in contact with Judon before he signed with Miami on Aug. 19. He has three tackles in three games for the Dolphins. Judon has 72 career sacks, which entering the season was tied for eighth-most among active players since he entered the league in 2016. Judon, a four-time Pro Bowl selection (2019-22), was a fifth-round pick by the Ravens after dominating at Grand Valley State (2012-15) as the school’s all-time leader with 35 sacks. He went to West Bloomfield High School,” Alter wrote.
Would the Dolphins Move On From Matthew Judon?
The Miami Dolphins have made some very questionable moves in the past, and while not playing Judon isn’t the end-all be-all, for a defense that’s been one of the worst in the NFL to start the year, one has to wonder why he isn’t on the field.
Whether it be due to him getting up there in age, the Dolphins not trusting him yet, or other factors, there’s something there.
When speaking to reporters after he signed with the Dolphins, he said that there are a lot of good edge rushers in Miami, which was expected to be the case early on, but stated that it just worked out, and he was happy to be there.
“It’s been alright,” Judon said. “Even though they’ve got a lot of really good EDGE rushers, we saw a fit and coach [McDaniel], [Grier] and everybody. It just worked out.
“Shout out to the whole organization; the Miami Dolphins culture. Everybody here made it easy. It was more welcoming than anything.”
Would Matthew Judon Fit With the Lions
Regarding the Detroit Lions as a potential fit for Judon, the 33-year-old who has just three tackles on the year, it was reported earlier in the offseason by Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press that Detroit had interest in signing him.
“The Lions have had dialogue about signing four-time Pro Bowler Matthew Judon, a free agent West Bloomfield High and Grand Valley State product who had 5½ sacks for the Atlanta Falcons last season,” he wrote.
There were also concerns about the Detroit Lions’ edge rushing group entering the year, and that only further complicated itself when Marcus Davenport went down with an injury that placed him on IR earlier in the week.
“Just worried about evaluating the guys we got here right now,” Campbell said before the season. “We’ve got a good crop of guys in here, young players. We’re about to go see what we can pull out of them, see what we can develop, see what comes from it and we’ll take it from there.”