Analyst: Cardinals Need to Sign Eagles OLB

The Arizona Cardinals should pursue this free agent, according to CBS Sports.

Nov 3, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Josh Sweat (19) in a game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images / Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

ARIZONA -- The Arizona Cardinals find themselves in massive need of a pass rusher moving into the 2025 offseason.

The good news? They've got some favorable capital to do just that.

Arizona enters the free agency period with roughly $70 million to spend on top of picks in rounds 1-5 of the 2025 NFL Draft, which is considered deep in terms of adding edge players.

The Cardinals are sure to have their eyes on a handful of impact players who can improve the pass rush, though a popular name circled has been Philadelphia Eagles pass rusher Josh Sweat.

Sweat, set to hit the open market, has previous experience with both Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon and defensive coordinator Nick Rallis.

That was one of a handful of reasons highlighted by CBS Sports in their logic of the Cardinals focusing on landing Sweat this offseason.

"The Cardinals need help on the edge, and they will probably make more than one addition here. Jonathan Gannon bringing Josh Sweat to Arizona could be a possibility. In Gannon's two seasons as the Eagles defensive coordinator, Sweat made the Pro Bowl, then racked up a career-high 11 sacks as Philly made the Super Bowl in 2022," wrote Jordan Dajani.

ESPN NFL insider Jeremy Fowler recently tied the Cardinals to Sweat's services - you can read more about that here.

Arizona has little firepower in their edge rotation, so Sweat's presence would be a massive boost. On top of his availability - playing no less than 16 games the last four years - he's tallied 33 sacks in that time frame.

The Cardinals have previously displayed a willingness to bring on former players, so Sweat's presence in the desert wouldn't exactly be surprising.

What would Sweat's potential price tag be? We evaluated that and other free agent fits in our latest podcast: