Bears were 'heavily involved' in trade talks for Matt Judon

The Chicago Bears made a splash last season when they traded for star defensive end Montez Sweat at the trade deadline. And it sounds like they were close to pairing him with another big-name pass rusher this summer.

According to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, the Bears were "heavily involved" in trade talks with the New England Patriots to acquire Pro Bowl edge rusher Matt Judon. Ultimately, the Patriots traded Judon to the Atlanta Falcons for a third-round pick, per ESPN.

Judon, 32, tallied 28.0 sacks from 2021-22, which tied for the third-most in the NFL with Pittsburgh's T.J. Watt, trailing San Francisco's Nick Bosa (34.0) and Myles Garrett (32.0). He's a four-time Pro Bowler (2019-22), and his streak was halted after he suffered a torn lower bicep in Week 4 of the 2023 season that ended his season.

It's not a surprise that general manager Ryan Poles explored trading for Judon, as he said during his pre-training camp press conference that "we will always have our eyes on the list of players we can potentially bring in," even through they feel "really comfortable" with the current roster.

Outside of Sweat, there isn't a proven commodity off the edge. While DeMarcus Walker has shown flashes, he had a down year after a breakout year with the Tennessee Titans in 2022. Meanwhile, rookie Austin Booker is still a young player who's developing and veterans Dominique Robinson, Daniel Hardy and Jacob Martin (currently sidelined) aren't proven.

With Chicago exploring landing Judon, it wouldn't be a surprise for them to bring in a veteran before the 2024 season, much like they did with Yannick Ngakoue last summer.

This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Bears were 'heavily involved' in trade talks for Matt Judon