Philadelphia Eagles: 2 Reasons Josh Sweat is poised for a breakout year
By Hunter Doyle
1. Are we certain that Sweat isn’t better than his Philadelphia Eagles teammate, Derek Barnett?
For Eagles general manager and vice president Howie Roseman, the decision was an easy one. He determined that Round 4 was the right time to pull the trigger on Sweat and add him to a dominant defensive line corps. It was a good spot, and it didn’t add any pressure on Sweat to become an immediate star.
The Eagles might’ve found a diamond in the rough, one that Howie was able to land via the draft collateral Philly earned in the Sam Bradford trade (they also landed the first-round pick Derek Barnett one year earlier). Barnett hasn’t been performed poorly by any means, he hasn’t gotten the production you would hope for from the 14th-overall selection.
It’s strange to think Sweat could possibly wind up being the better player, but is it out of the realm of possibility to say that we could see him develop beyond what Barnett has and wind up seeing more snaps for Sweat than Barnett gets in the defensive line’s rotation? Sweat might not have eye-popping numbers, but then again, neither does Barnett. It’s not out of the question or out of the realm of possibility.