Former Michigan State Spartan, Current NFL Star Opens Up About Being Traded

The NFL's Washington Commanders traded former Michigan State defensive lineman Montez Sweat to the Chicago Bears last season.

21. Seattle Seahawks - DE Montez Sweat, Mississippi State: Sweat has some off-field concerns from his time at Michigan State to answer for, but nothing the Seahawks won t be willing to overlook. 032415 Msu Football 1 1 9sbnqh67 L664773125 21. Seattle Seahawks - DE Montez Sweat, Mississippi State: Sweat has some off-field concerns from his time at Michigan State to answer for, but nothing the Seahawks wont be willing to overlook. / Ryan Garza, Detroit Free Press

Elite NFL edge rusher and former Michigan State Spartan Montez Sweat's tenure with the Washington Commanders came to an end last season when he was traded to the Chicago Bears in late October.

When being traded by a team you called home for several years, it's completely understandable that such a feeling would sting for a player who it their all for said organization, as Sweat did for Washington.

"I was shocked," Sweat told Dan Pompei of The Athletic. "In disbelief."

The Commanders, who were the Washington Redskins at the time, selected Sweat in the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft.

“I was very emotional,” the former Spartan said. “I was angry and probably said some things I wanted to take back. Maybe.”

The NFL is a business, but of course, whenever an event like this occurs, it feels personal.

“It felt like somebody kind of gave up on you, like you aren’t good enough anymore,” Sweat said.

As a member of the Commanders, Sweat totaled 165 tackles, 47 for losses, 35.5 sacks, 11 passes defensed, nine forced fumbles, an interception, and a touchdown in 67 games, all of which he started.

Despite those negative feelings, Sweat went on to thrive in his eight games in Chicago, posting 32 tackles, 10 for losses, 6.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, and a pass defensed.

“I’m playing more free, not worried about getting hurt,” Sweat said. “I thought it would happen in Washington, but that’s not how it played out, and I have no regrets about how it did. This is where God wanted me to be, in Chicago.”

Sweat played his first two collegiate seasons at Michigan State, where he played in just four games before being dismissed from the school.

Sweat rebounded, though, as he would develop into one of the best defensive ends in the SEC after joining Mississippi State.

Sweat led the conference in tackles for loss (16) and sacks (10.5) in just his first season with the Bulldogs. After two seasons with the program, he declared for the NFL Draft, and the rest is history.

The former Spartan enters his second season with the Bears and will be looking to pick up where he left off last year.

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