New England Patriots

Matt Judon enjoys trash talking with Tom Brady, even though it’s ‘not cordial’

It’s never like a point-the-finger-at-somebody type thing

Tom Brady is tackled by Matt Judon in 2019. AP Photo/Nick Wass

By Tom Westerholm

1 minute to read

New Patriots linebacker Matt Judon has faced Tom Brady before, and he knows what the former Patriots star has done both for the franchise and for the NFL.

He also has been on both the giving and receiving end of trash talk from (and for) perhaps the greatest quarterback of all time.

“Tom talks on the field and, you know, he says what comes to mind in the moment. He says what he feels like he has to say, but it’s never disrespectful or it’s never personal,” Judon told Jim McBride of the Boston Globe in a feature released on Sunday. “So, I enjoy talking trash with Tom because I talk as well. It’s not cordial, but it never gets personal. It’s never like a point-the-finger-at-somebody type thing. So, it was just always cool. And you played it off.

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So what would Judon — who spent the first five years of his career with the Baltimore Ravens — say to the venerable Brady if he sacked him?

“You help him up, and be like, ‘Better luck next time,’” Judon said. “Or you just say whatever you’re going to say, but you never attack the person. It’s always respect for the game and respect for the player. But you know, you talk trash.”

Judon will face Brady in Week 4 when the Buccaneers travel to Gillette Stadium. He signed a four-year, $56 million deal with the Patriots this offseason. Earlier this year, he told Bleacher Report that Brady is the toughest quarterback to sack (although not for a particularly flattering reason).

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“Tom Brady is the toughest just because he intentionally grounds the ball every time,” Judon said. “Every time I’m about to get a sack on him, he throws the ball away.”

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