The Bears are staring at a complicated Montez Sweat decision.
Sweat’s two-game suspension for performance-enhancing drugs doesn’t just cost him pay for the next two weeks. According to Spotrac, it also changes the shape of his contract in a major way, with the rest of his deal now non-guaranteed. That puts Chicago in a position where moving on after the season suddenly becomes a real possibility.
The biggest wrinkle is the 2027 salary, which is not guaranteed. That means the Bears could release Sweat after the season and clear more than $20 million.
On paper, that makes the case for cutting him pretty straightforward. He has been productive, but not the kind of impact force Chicago needs, and the edge group remains one of the main reasons the defense still has issues.
Add in the suspension, the age factor, and a season that has not been great, and the appeal of saving that money is obvious.
But the argument does not stop there.
If the Bears’ edge rushers are already a weakness, Sweat is still the best of the bunch. Letting him walk would make it even harder to turn that unit into a strength.
Boye Mafe signed for $20 million per year in free agency this offseason, and Odafe Oweh is now making $24 million. Since 2023, Mafe has 20 sacks and Oweh has 24.5.
Sweat has 30 over that same span. He is older than both, and there are more questions about what comes next, but he has also been the better rusher and is being paid at a similar rate.
Replacing him would not be simple, and the Bears could end up spending similar money on a lesser player, or splitting his salary across two players who still do not match his impact.
A trade would change the equation. If Chicago could move Sweat, it could clear his salary entirely and potentially use the pick to add an edge rusher. If the Bears could land someone comparable to Sweat in a deal and then put that player on a rookie deal, that would be an even cleaner outcome.
The problem is obvious: who is giving up the kind of pick it would take for a quality edge rusher with one year left on his contract? For that door to open, Sweat may need to finish the season strong.
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