Asked if he was offended that the Commanders traded him last season, Montez Sweat’s response was typically concise.
“I think any player would be a little offended,” the Bears defensive end said. “But it’s a business and I understand what comes with that. I was offended, but I didn’t take it personal.”
Therein likes the essence of Montez Sweat. Being offended and taking it personally is fuel that many athletes can’t live without. It transformed teammate Jaylon Johnson from a good player to one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL.
But for the soft-spoken and low-key Sweat, being offended and taking it personally is wasted energy and counter-productive emotion. It’s not his style. It doesn’t make him better. For him, it’s all about being comfortable in his skin and happy in his surroundings, then flipping the switch on Sunday.
That’s why the trade that brought Sweat from the Commanders to the Bears almost a year ago has been so good for the Bears and Sweat. It gave the Bears a much-needed pass rusher who commands double-teams and makes teammates at all three levels of the defense better. And it provided Sweat with a comfort zone that motivated him to be as good as he can be — with an organization that wanted him and paid him, a locker room that embraced him and a defense that needed him.
It’s not as easy as just being a superior athlete. Former Commanders teammate Chase Young — the former No. 2 overall pick who was considered by many the better defensive end — lasted just nine games with the 49ers after being traded in the same purge as Sweat last year, and now is in no-man’s land with the fading Saints. He could be on his fourth team in a year by this time next week.
Sweat, who signed a four-year, $98 million contract extension through the 2027 season, is in a much better place, with a lot to feel good about one year after being traded to the Bears.
“There are so many factors involved,” he said. “I went to the Pro Bowl. I got paid. But I think I’m happy just being somewhere that I’m wanted, being at a place where they want me to be and I’ve got a spot.”
After the trade, Sweat needed a hug almost as much as a contract, and the Bears — an emerging defense at the time but still desperate for an elite pass rusher — immediately provided that. Probably not coincidentally, Sweat’s impact on the field was almost immediate. He led the Bears in sacks with six in nine games. The Bears, who were 31st in the NFL in points allowed through the first nine weeks of the season (26.9 average), were first in the final eight weeks with Sweat (17.1 average).
“It’s just a good environment,” said Sweat, who has 2 1/2 sacks in six games. “You’re around guys you want to play for. You’re around coaches you want to play for. That makes you want to go hard. That adds a big part to your game.”
So when Sweat returns to Washington, D.C. to face his former team and some former teammates when the Bears play the Commanders at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Md. on Sunday, the emotion will be more nostalgic than melancholy.
“I’m feeling refreshed,” Sweat said. “It’s going to be good to go back and see some of the guys that I got drafted to and created some great relationships with. It’s going to be good just being back in the stadium.”
As it turned out, the environment with the Commanders has improved under new coach Dan Quinn. The Commanders are 5-2. Their defense, which was 31st in scoring when Sweat was traded lsat year, is 15th in scoring this season. But the Bears are fourth, and getting better.
“It’s exciting. We have everything in front of us,” Sweat said. “We control our own destiny. It’s great being on the winning side of things, for sure.”