Pass Rush Help for Bears Arrives
The Bears have found their defensive end in the trade market and it's not Chase Young.
Young's teammate Montez Sweat has been dealt to the Bears. The Bears confirmed the trade that was first reported by Adam Schefter of ESPN. For Sweat, the Bears were reported to have given up a 2024 second-round draft pick.
Sweat has been a dependable pass rusher off the edge throughout his career with 35.5 sacks in four-plus seasons, and a high of nine in 2020. He also has been an extremely effective edge player against the run with 47 tackles for loss for his career.
The Bears had an up-close look at Sweat's ability the last two seasons. In two games against them, he made 2 1/2 sacks of Justin Fields, three tackles for loss and six quarterback hits.
Sweat this season is graded by Pro Football Focus 28th among 107 edge players PFF has graded and 48th as a pass rusher.This enables Bears coach Matt Eberflus a better chance to run his defensive scheme the way he wants, without blitzing and with a four-man rush. They have resorted to more blitzing this year without an ability to pressure quarterbacks using their four-man rush.
PFF grades Sweat as the No. 3 edge player against the run in the NFL this season.
Unlike Young, Sweat's injury history is relatively clean. Young had a bad knee injury in 2021 but Sweat is healthy and without issues. Sweat had a fractured jaw in 2021 when he missed almost half a season but no other significant injuries.
The 6-foot-6, 262-pounder from Michigan State and Mississippi State has 6 1/2 sacks, 10 tackles for loss and 11 quarterback hits already this season. Coming out of college as the 26th pick overall in the 2019 draft, Sweat ran a remarkably fast 40-yard time for a defensive end of 4.41 seconds.
Of Sweat's 2971 career plays on defense, he lined up on the edge 2,940 times. So he is not a player they're moving to tackle on occasion like with defensive end DeMarcus Walker.
Sweat, 27, is also known as a good tackler. He has had only 11 missed tackles in five seasons, only one each of the last two seasons.
The Bears do need to come up with a new contract now for Sweat because he is a free agent after this season. Spotrac.com has Sweat's market value projected at $16.6 million per year.
Considering Sweat is going to command a bigger contract as a pass rusher, it could definitely say something about what the Bears are willing to pay Jaylon Johnson in a contract. They'd have less available against the cap for a cornerback if Sweat commands the kind of money more highly paid defensive ends normally receive.
Or it could mean they don't plan to pay someone else. The obvious other big contract they would have coming up is their quarterback, Fields.
The Bears thought they had a good sack threat in Yannick Ngakoue when they signed him for $10.5 million and one year but he has produced just two sacks and four QB hits on the season.
With Sweat now, the Bears could go to a four-man rush with Walker playing three technique, Ngakoue and Sweat on the outside and either Gervon Dexter, Zacch Pickens or Justin Jones at defensive tackle.
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