When the Bears sent a second round pick to the Commanders to bring in defensive end Montez Sweat at Tuesday’s NFL trade deadline many fans hoped it would give the team the spark it needed on the defensive line. For a year and a half the Bears have had the worst pass rush in the NFL, so adding a player of Sweat’s caliber seemed like a move that could help the team take a step in the right direction.
Even though Sweat had been in Chicago for just four days, some expected Sweat to make an instant impact. And when Sweat didn’t get home for a sack in his first game as a Bear, those same people took to social media to express concern that GM Ryan Poles had once again traded for a dud, with memories of Chase Claypool’s turbulent tenure with the team still fresh.
But on NBC Sport Chicago’s “Football Aftershow,” former Bears linebacker Lance Briggs explained why he thought Sweat had a positive impact, despite being held without a sack.
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“You don’t always have to make the plays,” Briggs said on the show. “You don’t.”
Instead, Briggs praised Montez for creating some pressure on Saints quarterback Derek Carr, especially when Sweat drew a one-on-one matchup with an offensive lineman.
“When you get one-on-ones, you have to be able to defeat them,” said Briggs. “Now defeating them doesn’t necessarily mean you’re getting a sack, but what it does mean is, are you forcing that ball from that quarterback to come out (not) on time?”
One snap in particular against Saints left tackle Andrus Peat caught Briggs’ eye.
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“You can see right here he uses that strong arm, he’s going to push Andrus all the way back into the quarterback. He’s pushing him all the way back into Carr and that ball’s coming out within four seconds.”
That’s the key number in Briggs’ mind for the Bears pass rushers to help the team’s secondary.
“If it comes out in four seconds, guess what? Guys like Jaylon Johnson, you get those picks. And when you get those picks, you get the $19 million.”
That last bit is a nod to the cornerback’s stalled contract talks with the team. Sweat got his big-time deal just days after coming to Chicago. If Sweat can impact the quarterback even more as he gets settled with his new team, he could be a key reason for Johnson to see an uptick in production over the second half of the season as he tries to get a big deal of his own.