MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Matthew Judon didn’t need long to show why the Miami Dolphins added him to their pass-rush rotation.
On his first day in team drills Wednesday, the four-time Pro Bowl linebacker had back-to-back sacks on quarterback Zach Wilson, using his signature rip move.
The Dolphins signed Judon to a one-year deal worth up to $6 million with incentives.
Judon, who visited team headquarters Monday morning and worked out for the team shortly after, said the fit felt “natural” despite Miami already having depth at edge rusher.
“Just a good opportunity, a good situation even though they’ve got a lot of edge rushers,” Judon said. “They’ve got really good edge rushers. We just saw a fit. (Head) Coach Mike (McDaniel), (General Manager) Chris (Grier), it just worked out.”
Judon joins a group that includes Jaelan Phillips, Bradley Chubb and Chop Robinson, a foursome he believes could overwhelm offensive lines.
“For sure, you can’t gameplan nobody and if you’ve got to chip both ends, that’s great for us,” Judon said. “Untapped potential. You can talk about it, it can look good on paper, but right now we’ve got to go out there and put the work in.”
A fifth-round pick by Baltimore in 2016, Judon has also played for New England and Atlanta. He has 72 sacks, 410 tackles, nine forced fumbles and one interception over his career.
For now, Judon said his focus is getting comfortable in Miami’s system while letting his new teammates lead the way.
“I don’t have to come in here and be the guy right away,” he said. “I can let them guys go out and do what they do and I can just plug and play. However they see me playing — that’s going to be a week-to-week thing, but it’s never a bad thing to have more than one rusher.”
The Dolphins will have a joint practice with the Jacksonville Jaguars at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Thursday morning.