Cardinals, Josh Sweat agree to four-year deal

This will be a four-year, $76.4M deal, Schefter adds. Sweat will collect $41M guaranteed. Coming off a strong 2024 regular and postseason with the Eagles, he will be counted on to add a considerable boost along the edge in Arizona.

One of the top free agents entering the week, Sweat will parlay a dominant Super Bowl LIX performance into a nice third contract. The Cardinals will reunite the seven-year Eagles EDGE with Jonathan Gannon, Sweat’s DC for two seasons in Philly. The Eagles have now lost both Sweat and Milton Williams. Especially since the Super Bowl champs re-signed Zack Baun, these defections were not unexpected.

Sweat’s contract looks similar to Shaquil Barrett‘s after his Super Bowl rampage. The Buccaneers had agreed to a four-year, $72M deal to bring back Barrett, who had pressured Patrick Mahomes throughout a Super Bowl LV blowout. Sweat did not do as well, but he also does not have a sack title on his resume like Barrett did. Still, Sweat did well to rebound after taking a pay cut to stay with the Eagles last year.

Carrying only one double-digit sack season on his resume (11 in 2022), Sweat still led a championship-winning Eagles team in sacks (eight) before registering 2.5 more against the Chiefs. Sweat pushing Kansas City LT Joe Thuney into Mahomes, forcing a Baun second-quarter interception, rounded out a banner night for a player who hit free agency at just 27. Sweat did well to only sign a three-year contract (worth $40M) in 2021, keeping him squarely in his prime to cash in as the cap exploded. The cap has gone up by an astonishing $97M since Sweat’s last contract.

The Cardinals re-signed Baron Browning just before free agency but will slide the ex-Bronco to the sidekick role upon landing Sweat. Stepping into Gannon’s system should bring familiarity, as Sweat’s best season came under Gannon. Sweat’s 11 sacks helped Philly threaten the 1984 Bears’ single-season sack record, and he became the player retained last year — ahead of a Haason Reddick separation.

A Cardinals team that has not effectively rebounded after the exists of Chandler Jones, J.J. Watt and Zach Allen acquired a proven pass rusher. More work remains on Arizona’s defensive line, but Sweat represents a building block in Gannon’s third season.