ESSENDON'S early play had undoubtedly started to sow the seeds of doubt in the minds of a few Carlton players at the MCG on Saturday night when Chris Judd decided to take matters into his own hands.

With three losses in the last four matches, the Blues entered their round 18 clash with the Bombers a little unsure of themselves and it showed.

Carlton was good but not great against the determined Dons until Judd sparked a second-half avalanche that restored confidence across the board.

"What he did tonight was think 'Well there are a few blokes down, but I'm going to lead the way'," coach Brett Ratten said after the 74-point thrashing.

"I thought his first half was amazing. Winning the ball and doing what he did … I thought he just really helped us be where we were at half time. He's one of those players where everyone jumps on board.

"There are a lot of competitive people in the game, and you get to play with a few through your own time, but then to see it as a coach with how hard he pushes himself and how determined he is in, not just one contest but 100 or 150 in a game … he's a marvel."

Judd finished with 33 possessions and 12 tackles in a performance worthy of three Brownlow votes.

Teammate Eddie Betts might have taken a vote or two off his captain with eight goals, but when you consider Judd kicked a goal and also had an amazing seven score assists, maximum votes are surely in the bag.

Ratten credits the development of Judd's supporting cast at Visy Park as the key factor in inspiring the dual Brownlow medallist to play the sort of football that could bring him a third this year.  

"It's amazing how things can change with a bit of a challenge internally," he said.

"Every time Chris goes to a game, he's a really proud man and wants to perform at his optimum every week, but I think when you've got a challenger within that actually drives him a little bit more.

"Back in his West Coast days he had Cousins and Kerr challenging him, but now he's got Murphy, Gibbs, Scotland and Simpson really pushing him. He's got people within challenging his reputation as the No.1 player at our football club and I think that's drawn the best out of him."