2025 Chicago Bears Free Agent Target: Josh Sweat |
When the Chicago Bears traded for edge rusher Montez Sweat in the middle of last season, they thought they had found their guy. Sweat recorded six sacks in nine games with the Bears to become a Pro Bowler for the first time.
However, Montez did not have as stellar a performance this season, with only 5.5 sacks in 16 games. He needs another pass rusher. Perhaps he needs a player named Sweat on the other side. Josh Sweat, who has spent the past seven seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles, is set to become an unrestricted free agent (UFA) once the league's new year starts in March. Sweat reached the Pro Bowl in 2021 and recorded his only pick-six in 2022 when he had 11 sacks. In 2024, Josh Sweat was listed as a linebacker, although he played defensive end for his first six years with Philadelphia, including in 2021 and 2022. This past season, Sweat recorded eight sacks with the Eagles. That is more than anyone on the Bears was able to do. In addition, he had nine tackles for loss and 15 QB hits. Only two players with Chicago registered more QB hits than Sweat last year - defensive linemen Gervon Dexter and DeMarcus Walker. However, both of them had fewer tackles for loss. Part of why Montez Sweat experienced so much success with the Bears in 2023 was that he had another player generating pressure—interior defensive lineman Justin Jones. While Jones did not register high numbers, his pressure gave Montez the opening he needed. Signing Josh Sweat would have a similar impact on Montez because it would give defenses another player they need to guard. The biggest problem with signing Josh Sweat is that it is more about money than his talent. Sweat’s contract was renegotiated to give him a $10 million salary this past year. However, given his age and his performance in the NFL so far, Spotrac projects that Sweat deserves a contract of about $15 million per year. With the changing market for defensive ends, it may be more realistic to put a good prospect at defensive end. This would be a multi-year contract with a most likely scenario of a three-year deal. Right now, Chicago has over $74 million of cap space. A $20 million deal would significantly reduce that cap space, but that would still give the Bears over $54 million to work with. In addition, they could shape the contract so that the cap hit is less this year and spreads more over the following two seasons. For example, when cornerback Jaylon Johnson received his four-year contract, his contract only had a $13 million cap hit in the first season and will have a $21 million cap hit in the next three seasons. Thus, the Bears could find a way to make Josh Sweat’s contract cap-friendly. This is a luxury Chicago has with the cap while rookie quarterback Caleb Williams is still on his rookie deal. Having a quarterback on a rookie deal frees up cap room, and the Bears should take advantage of that, starting by signing defensive end Josh Sweat to play alongside Montez Sweat. This move alone should increase Chicago’s ability to generate pressure in the backfield next season.
