Philadelphia Eagles: 2 Reasons Josh Sweat is poised for a breakout year
By Hunter Doyle
2. Let’s examine Sweat’s first two seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles and his future with the Philadelphia Eagles.
Sweat’s rookie year was a learning period. He was transitioning from Florida State’s 3-4 scheme to Jim Schwartz’s 4-3 scheme. That’s a difficult adjustment as it is, especially considering that transitioning into an NFL defense isn’t an easy task, to begin with.
He was also just 21 years old that season and was on the back of the defensive end depth chart that included seasoned veterans such as Brandon Graham, Michael Bennett, and Chris Long along with Derek Barnett who was entering his sophomore season. Sweat only played in 68 defensive snaps and appeared in nine games that year compiling just one tackle and one hit on the quarterback before landing on injured reserve in December.
Vinny Curry was reacquired in 2019. The departure of Michael Bennett and the retirement of Chris Long opened up an opportunity for Sweat. In his second season, he played in all 16 games in situational duty and saw a significant increase in playing time, seeing the field on 352 defensive snaps. The numbers weren’t bad at all as he put up 21 total tackles (seven resulted in a loss of yardage), 15 quarterback pressures, ten quarterback hits, four sacks, and one pass deflection.
Not bad huh?