Washington Football Team: Montez Sweat establishing elite status

Montez Sweat has become a certified stud for the Washington Football Team.

The Washington Football Team used their first-round pick (15th overall) in 2019 on quarterback Dwayne Haskins. However, as the round went on, another stud prospect was available, and Washington decided they couldn’t pass on him. They traded back up in the first round to select pass rusher Montez Sweat with the 26th overall pick.

Sweat is a freak athlete who was projected to be a sack machine in the NFL. However, a health scare kept some teams away from him and allowed the elite prospect to slide down draft boards and fall to No. 26.

The Mississippi State product had a strong rookie year in 2019. He recorded 50 tackles (eight for loss), seven sacks, two forced fumbles, and two pass deflections. Despite that solid campaign, some fans were oddly low on him. As if they were expecting the rookie who only played in 64 percent of the team’s defensive snaps to put up superstar numbers immediately.

Looking at the year through an unbiased scope though, it is hard not to be impressed. Sweat put up good numbers despite limited playing time and high expectations. So the question was, would he make that second-year jump? The answer has been a resounding “yes” — and it’s unlikely even his biggest doubters can deny him now.

It’s not crazy for Washington Football Team and NFL fans to call Montez Sweat elite.

Through 11 games in 2020, Sweat is once again appearing in 64 percent of the team’s defensive snaps. Despite that, he has managed 28 tackles (seven for loss) to go along with six sacks (leading the team). Sweat also has two forced fumbles and two pass deflections once again.

However, this year he has added an interception (that he took back for a touchdown). That interception may have been the moment it happened — the moment Sweat became “elite”. We aren’t just talking about a “good” player, a “great” player or even someone that you would consider “top-tier”. We’re jumping to elite.

That play came against the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving. Washington probably already had the game wrapped up (leading by 18 with under four minutes to go). Just in case, though, Sweat decided to put a bow on it with a monstrous game-sealing pick-six, the type of play that has made J.J. Watt a star in the league.

More importantly, the defensive end is showing a lot of smarts too. He is not just getting the better of his opponents because he’s athletic. Sweat is reading plays, finding holes and doing all the right things. It seems like every game we can point to a few plays that Sweat makes a major impact on. He’s always leaving his mark.

It’s that mixture of speed, athleticism, footwork, strength, hand movement and football IQ that makes him so effective. He’ll blow past a blocker, blow someone up, cross someone over or just follow the play properly. That incredible speed makes him that much more dangerous.

This was a year where he could have easily been overshadowed. Sweat had a good rookie year but it was disappointing according to some. With the addition of Chase Young, Sweat could have easily been buried. Young has come in, dropped some big numbers and become a star in his own right.

Instead of fading opposite that spotlight, Sweat has risen to the occasion. He is proving there is a reason he was one of the top prospects in the 2019 NFL Draft. He was an “elite” prospect then, and he’s an “elite” pass rusher now.

Montez Sweat is becoming one of the best players on the Washington Football Team defense and one of the best pass rushers in the entire NFL. Don’t be afraid to say it; he’s elite.