Eagles needed one week to feel good about not re-signing Josh Sweat

When Josh Sweat signed his four-year, $76 million deal with the Arizona Cardinals to reunite with his old Philadelphia Eagles defensive coordinator and now head coach, Jonathan Gannon, most in Philly were okay not paying him top dollar. That feeling was vindicated in Week 1.

The Cardinals were able to open the season with a 20-13 win over former Eagles offensive coordinator and now New Orleans Saints head coach Kellen Moore. Arizona did not receive the production they were hoping for from Sweat, though.

Sweat played in 45 snaps off the edge, the most out of any at the position. His final stat line? One tackle and one quarterback hit. That's it.

Eagles just saved themselves from a $76 million mistake

Many Cardinals fans on social media are scratching their heads the day after, with many asking if he even played in the game. Sweat did play, but didn't get as much pressure on the Saints as some thought he would.

This was part of the reason the Eagles couldn't justify paying Sweat big money to bring him back. He had some great moments in his career, but had 10 or more sacks in a season once in 2022. Last year, he had a team-high eight sacks for the Eagles, but had just 15 quarterback hits, which was the lowest for Sweat since 2021.

Sweat was a very good edge rusher and has proven that over the years. He does have one Pro Bowl to his resume. This shouldn't have been seen as a hit piece on him, especially after his impact on their playoff run last year with 2.5 sacks in the postseason.

It's more about the Cardinals potentially overshooting on a player who might not reach the levels of Micah Parsons or Trey Hendrickson. Sweat will be a good linemen, but he has never been the consistent game-changer Arizona needs him to be.

There is still plenty of the 2025 season left for him to prove this narrative wrong, but the Saints have one of the worst rosters in the NFL, so to have only one quarterback hit on them is a bit worrisome.