Does new Bills' pass-rusher Matthew Judon have anything left in tank?

A Pro Bowler as recently as 2022, new Buffalo Bills' pass-rusher Matthew Judon is ranked last among defensive ends this season by PFF.

Matthew Judon | JAMIE GERMANO / USA TODAY NETWORK

For years, the Buffalo Bills made specific roster moves with one specific goal in mind: Get Patrick Mahomes on the ground the playoffs.

With Mahomes and his Kansas City Chiefs shockingly absent from this year's playoffs, the Bills' focus now shifts to a new lot of AFC quarterbacks they could face in January ... C.J. Stroud, Bo Nix, Trevor Lawrence, Aaron Rodgers, or Drake Maye.

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The Von Miller experiment fell flat. Signing Joey Bosa has paid huge dividends. Following a similar blueprint, the Bills are signing veteran pass-rusher with skins on the wall but maybe not much gas in the tank — Matthew Judon.

Matthew Judon | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

To Bills Mafia surely the name rings a bell. Judon was a Pro Bowl four times in the AFC, most recently with the New England Patriots in 2022. But at age 33, his effectiveness has fallen off a cliff.

In 13 games with the Miami Dolphins, Judon produced 0 sacks. In PFF's rankings of defensive ends, he is 112th out of 112 players. Yikes.

Desperate times, however, call for desperate measures.

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Quarterback Josh Allen is playing at an MVP level and with the nemesis Chiefs out of the picture, the AFC feels wide-open. The Bills are in "go for it" mode. Their defense is ranked 25th on third down, and only 17th with 31 sacks.

Judon isn't near his prime or anywhere close to an every-down player. The Bills are taking a low-risk, high-reward gamble on Judon being a pass-rush specialist who could come up with a key sack in the playoffs.

Matthew Judon | JAMIE GERMANO/ROCHESTER DEMOCRAT AND CHRONICLE , Rochester Democrat and Chronicle via Imagn Content

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