2025 Chicago Bears Free Agent Target: Josh Sweat

Eric Hartline - USA Today Sports

Dustin Riese - Senior Writer - 7 hours ago

When the Bears are at their best, which they were at their best back in the day, the defense often sets the tone. Look no further than their Super Bowl team in the 1980s. Their nickname was the Monsters of the Midway for a reason, as it was the defense that wreaked havoc on anyone and anything.

Fast forward to the Lovie Smith days, which ironically is the last time the Bears made the Superbowl, and it was the defense once again set the tone with guys like Brian Urlacher anchoring the defense those seasons. Even when the Bears were going strong during the Matt Nagy era, a big reason for that was the addition of Khalil Mack to Akiem Hicks, which was already in place as the Bears defensive abilities have led to most of their success.

While the offense has let the team down the past few seasons, the defense hasn't been great either. They have ranked near the bottom of the league in quarterback sacks the past three seasons. You started to see things trend in a better direction in 2023 as the Bears traded for Montez Sweat, who led the team in sacks despite playing in just nine games that season.

Sweat came into 2024 with very high expectations, but those expectations were never met as the Bears ranked near the bottom of the league in sacks for the fourth time in five seasons. That can't happen if the Bears want to make the postseason in the near future, and despite the offensive line being the biggest concern, Chicago can't overlook their pass rush this offseason.

Fortunately for them, Chicago will have plenty of options to choose from through the draft or free agency, with Josh Sweat at the top of their list. The younger brother of current Bears edge rusher Montez Sweat, Josh is not only a top-10 free agent heading into the offseason but is also viewed as one of the best, if not the best, edge rushers available.

It's not too often when two brothers have an opportunity to play together on the same team, let alone two brothers with these guys' abilities. The now 27-year-old is coming off a Superbowl title with the Eagles and had a career year, which is only going to intensify his market this offseason.

When you look at some of the edge rushers in today's game, Sweat is not only one of the bigger ones at 6-5 265 pounds but is also one of the more athletic LB/Edge rushers in the game. He uses that to his advantage in the running and passing games, as he has a knack for finding the football and making plays.

After doing next to nothing across nine games during his rookie season, Sweat has spent the past six years turning himself into a great player. For his career, he has registered 148 tackles and 43 sacks. That includes a career-high eight sacks this past season to go with 27 tackles, which was only four off his career high in tackles set in 2021.

Many people credit his success this season to the overall talent surrounding the Eagles defense, and that may be true. However, Montez Sweat is a very talented player in his own right, and should you pair the brothers together, there is no telling the kind of success either of them can have.

Not only did Sweat have a career season, but he showed up during the biggest moments in the playoffs and registered 2.5 sacks during the Super Bowl. Had the Superbowl MVP voting been done after the game as opposed to what was going on during the game, Sweat had a legitimate case to win the award, which shows how good he can be.

With his brother set to make $18 million over the next four seasons, Josh should be able to command a hefty price tag in his own right. However, with many experts expecting his salary to fall in the $13-15 million range, why not add him for four years and pair him with his brother to create one of the more lethal edge-rushing duos in the game?