The Eagles’ pass rotation will be much improved after the addition of Bryce Huff, but they’ll retain one of their own after agreeing to a restructured contract with pass rusher Josh Sweat.
Sweat finished his sixth NFL season with 6.5 sacks (second-best on the Eagles) and 43 tackles in 17 regular-season games.
Source: Josh Sweat staying with the #Eagles on a restructured deal with $10M guaranteed plus incentives (max of $13M)
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) March 15, 2024
With details of the restructure coming in, we’re looking at takeaways and observations.
What is Sweat's future in Philadelphia?
Sweat was entering a contract year with a base salary of just over $1 million and a cap hit of just over $9 million.
He was set to count over $21 million against the 2025 salary cap, and some wonder if he reached his ceiling as a pass rusher.
He’ll now return in 2024 with $10 million guaranteed next year on his new deal with up $13 million in incentives.
He had no guarantees going into 2024.
What is Sweat's ceiling
Sweat saw his role increase even more in the Eagles’ defensive end rotation this season, as his 71 percent snap share increased over his 56 percent mark from the 2022 season.
In granting permission to seek a trade, Howie Roseman may have had questions about extending Sweat after his sack totals dropped from the 11.0 he logged in 2022.
Sweat had 5.5 sacks through nine games but didn’t manage another until Week 18. Sweat also had 19 QB hits through 10 games and just four in the last seven games.
Haason Reddick
Josh Sweat and Bryce Huff off the edge is a good starting point, and more snaps for Nolan Smith can only make this rotation even more dangerous.
But what about Haason Reddick?
The Eagles’ star pass rusher was also granted permission to seek a trade, and he’s looking to move up the list of highest-paid pass rushers.
Reddick finished 15th in the league with 11 sacks and made his second straight Pro Bowl.
He recorded double-digit sacks for the fourth consecutive season, leading his team in that category and tying for 15th in the NFL.
Had Nolan Smith unequivocally shown that he was ready to be an elite pass rusher, then maybe the idea would have been to cut Reddick, saving the Eagles $11 million after the dead money allotment.
Outside of the sacks, though, Reddick’s numbers were poor by his standards.
His 38 tackles were the second-lowest mark of his career, and he didn’t force or recover a fumble after forcing five and recovering three last season. His snap share (74 percent) remained identical, indicating the drop-off wasn’t due to a lack of opportunities but mismanagement from coaches.
Reddick was dropped back in coverage 15 times in the last three games after dropping back just three times in the first 15 games. Depending on how Vic Fangio views his role, Philadelphia could save $11 million after the dead cap hit by moving on and rolling with a new rotation.
2024 pass rush rotation
Philadelphia now has Bryce Huff, Zack Baun, Julian Okwara, Patrick Johnson, Nolan Smith, Tarron Jackson and Brandon Graham as the potential standouts in a deep pass rush rotation.
