Vikings Rival Swings Big Trade Ahead of the Trade Deadline
Josh Frey
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At 4 PM Eastern this afternoon, the NFL trade deadline will have arrived.
Because of that, the expectation is that a number of veteran players will be moved as contending teams try to strengthen their rosters for the final stretch of the season. One of the teams that somewhat unexpectedly got involved in the action was a Vikings rival, the Chicago Bears, who acquired EDGE Montez Sweat from the Washington Commanders.
Vikings Rival Swings Big Trade
Ian Rapoport of NFL Network tweeted out the details of the trade, writing, “Sources: The #Bears and #Commanders are in agreement on a massive trade for star pass-rusher Montez Sweat to land in Chicago in exchange for a 2nd round pick.”
That second-round selection is a 2024 pick which would be the 35th overall selection in next spring’s draft if the season ended today. The 35th pick in the 2023 NFL Draft was TE Michael Mayer, who went to the Las Vegas Raiders.
In return for that potentially very valuable draft selection, Chicago adds another pass rusher to try and improve a group that is ranked dead-last in sacks with 10. PFF also has them as the worst pass-rushing group in the league with a grade of 54.5.
Sweat was selected in the first round of the 2019 Draft, being picked 26th overall by Washington. Over his first four seasons, he recorded 10+ tackles for loss and 6.5+ sacks three times. The only exception was 2021 when he played just 10 games.
2023 has been another outstanding season for Sweat, though. Through the first eight games for the Commanders, he put together 32 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, and 6.5 sacks. With the Commanders leaning towards a rebuild and this being the final year of his contract, the expectation had always been that he would be moved at the deadline.
With that in mind, the Bears are very likely to sign the 27-year-old to a new contract extension soon. They now have a franchise cornerstone off the edge, which is something that has not been able to be said in Chicago for a long time.
The Vikings won’t have to wait long to see the new-look Bears this season. After earning a Week 6 victory over Chicago at Soldier Field, the Bears will travel to U.S. Bank Stadium in Week 12. That game is currently slated as a Monday night matchup scheduled for November 27th.
Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho and managing editor of PurplePTSD.com. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys running, gaming, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. Check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.