Bears' Montez Sweat Rips Commanders Tenure as 'a Toxic, Heavy Toll, Just Losing'
Montez Sweat is glad his time on the Washington Commanders is in the rearview mirror.
The Chicago Bears acquired the pass-rusher from Washington via trade during the 2023 season, and he didn't exactly reflect on fond memories during an interview with Jason Lieser of the Chicago Sun-Times that published Monday.
"It was a toxic, heavy toll, just losing and people around you being kind of OK with losing," Sweat said of his time with the Commanders. "It could sometimes rub off on you. You've gotta stay hungry and know that you want to win."
Washington selected Sweat with a first-round pick in the 2019 NFL draft, but it went just 28-45-1 during his four-plus seasons with the team.
While Chicago hasn't exactly been a consistent winner of late, the team looked much better with the pass-rusher helping lead the way down the stretch last season. It went 5-4 with him on the roster and held opponents to 20 points or less in its last six games.
"I definitely made a transition to a better spot for me," Sweat said. "[Shoot], this was my first Pro Bowl and first double-digit sack year and all those types of things. I reached some accolades that I always had aspirations of getting, but never reached in Washington. You could definitely say it worked out better for me."
The 2023 Pro Bowler finished the season with a career-best 12.5 sacks, six of which came in nine games for Chicago.
Expectations are elevated for the Bears heading into the 2024 campaign with Sweat and many of the defensive leaders returning. Throw in a new-look offense featuring Caleb Williams, DJ Moore, Keenan Allen, Rome Odunze, D'Andre Swift, Cole Kmet and Gerald Everett, and anything less than a playoff appearance would be a disappointment.
Which is surely welcome news for Sweat, who was tired of the losing in Washington.
