Bear Digest

It's Sack Time for Montez Sweat No Matter Where He Begins Plays

Bears edge rusher has several factors working on his side that he didn't have when he came to Chicago last year and finished among NFL sack leaders.

Gene Chamberlain

Montez Sweat and Austin Booker make a tackle against the Bills in preseason. Sweat says he is ready to chase QBs and finish with sacks.
Montez Sweat and Austin Booker make a tackle against the Bills in preseason. Sweat says he is ready to chase QBs and finish with sacks. / Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images
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Starting quarterbacks become fair game now for pass rushers and that means Montez Sweat can hit someone besides Caleb Williams.

He wasn't really trying to hit Williams in practice, but accidents happen and it did a couple of times. He felt he owed it to Williams to get extra heat on him in order to test him. But he found the rookie doesn't really rattle.

So starting Sunday, its rattlin' time.

"Yeah, I'm excited," Sweat said. "Even in practice we still have to stay off the QB's and that type of stuff. I'm excited to get my hands on the QB."

The newly revamped Bears pass rush gets to go after Will Levis first. This includes Sweat lining up to rush Levis from multiples spots on defense, something he didn't do after arriving last year after coming over at midseason for six Bears sacks and 12 1/2 on the year.

And by the way, Tennessee's offensive line last year allowed 64 sacks. Only three teams gave up more. Sweat had two sacks in an earlier game two years ago against the Titans, as well as four quarterback hits.

"Well, I mean it's a different head coach, it's a different offensive coordinator," Sweat said. "They got some of the same cats on the offense, but it's a different team from two years ago.

"I just have to hone in on my scouting report that I'm doing this year and things that they have shown us and just move from there."

The key word being "move," because that's what he'll be doing. He's not going to be in his customary left defensive end spot all day.

"We have to put him in a position where we can anticipate the best production, the greatest production quotient from him," defensive coordinator Eric Washington said. "At the same time, we'd like to challenge or utilize his ability to align in multiple places and to challenge the different protection, the individual protection pieces and what they're doing overall."

They'll try not to go overboard with it, and it might be a good thing considering he's nursing a toe injury and only doing partial practices this week.

"We don't want to come up with ideas that take away from what we know he can give us as a left defensive end," Washington said.

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Sweat being at right side, or even at one of the tackle spots is aimed at preventing chipping, the term used when a player comes out of the backfield and gets a quick block in on the pass rusher before going out into a pass pattern.

"I appreciate it," Sweat said. "It gives the offense different looks to look at. ... It's kind of hard to chip you if they don't know where you're going to be when they come off our offense.

"So, I mean, it's a challenge to understand the different positions and avenues on how different sides of the field like to rush, and also learning different matchups. So yeah, I like it though."

Sweat has more working on his side than just moving around to avoid chips. Besides his natural pass rush ability, he now has the full training camp and preseason under his belt as well as half of last season. Coming to Chicago in a trade for a second-round pick just before the trade deadline meant throwing him into the fray without much mental preparation.

"Yeah, I'm a lot more comfortable than I definitely was last year coming in, just knowing the defense and knowing where I can play in different positions across the line and all that type of stuff," Sweat said. "So yeah, just a lot more comfortable."

The other big edge for Sweat is he has more help this year, or at least more than he had at the end of last season. Darrell Taylor's addition as an extra edge rusher to join Sweat, starter DeMarcus Walker and reserves Daniel Hardy, Dominique Robinson and Austin Booker means six men who could rush. It would seem unlikely all would be active, but Taylor has averaged more than seven sacks a season for his three years.

"I mean, it's very important," Sweat said. "Really, I gotta coincide with everybody on that line. But definitely a one-two punch on the other side definitely compliments the rush a lot.

"It takes chippers off me. Sometimes it brings more attention. It might create more one-on-ones for me or him. So, but yeah, it’s something needed."

Anything to help out the rush, now that they can finally turn it loose and chase QBs.

"Yeah, I mean, we big boys and we hungry," Sweat said. "We just like to eat, we like to hunt. We like to get out there."

Twitter: BearsOnSI

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

BearDigest.com publisher Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.