The Chicago Bears will play their next two games without their top pass rusher. The NFL suspended Montez Sweat for two games without pay Tuesday for violating its policy on performance-enhancing substances. He’ll miss Sunday’s game against the Atlanta Falcons and the Thursday night game against the New England Patriots, and he is eligible to return for Week 8 against the Seattle Seahawks on Monday Night Football.
What the Bears lose without Sweat
Sweat has started all five games for the 3-2 Bears and played 69% of their defensive snaps. He has two sacks, and he had 11 pressures through the first four games, according to PFF.
He is also Chicago’s highest-paid player, with a $25.08 million cap hit this season, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. Chicago traded a second-round pick to the Washington Commanders for him in 2023 and then gave him a four-year, $98 million extension. He had 10 sacks last season.
Austin Booker gets the first shot
Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images
Booker is the obvious first answer. He came off the bench in Sunday’s 31-7 loss to the Green Bay Packers and sacked Jordan Love twice near the end of the first half. PFF gave him an 86.8 overall grade for the game, the best on the Bears’ defense, on 45 snaps.
It’s a small sample, but Booker had already graded well. Through four games, his 72.3 PFF grade was tied for second on the defense, and he had seven pressures on 81 pass-rush snaps.
Dayo Odeyingbo’s quad is the bigger worry
The Bears’ other answer may not be available. Dayo Odeyingbo suffered a quadriceps injury in the second half at Green Bay and didn’t return. Through four games, he led the Bears with 13 pressures, according to PFF.
If Odeyingbo can’t go, the depth behind Booker is James Lynch, who started at defensive end Sunday, plus Daniel Hardy and Marcus Davenport. Hardy and Davenport have played a combined 19 defensive snaps this season.
Chicago did get some help Tuesday. In the same set of moves that put Sweat on the suspended list, the Bears activated defensive lineman Shemar Turner off the reserve/physically unable to perform list. Turner, a 2025 second-round pick from Texas A&M, tore his ACL as a rookie last October and has not played since.
Could the Bears look outside the building?
A two-game suspension usually isn’t enough to force a trade, but Chicago’s edge problem may last longer if Odeyingbo misses time. The Athletic’s Jonathan Jones reported last week that a Khalil Mack trade from the Los Angeles Chargers to the Bears “makes the most sense” if both teams stay on their current paths. Mack played for the Bears from 2018-21.
For now, the plan is Booker plus whoever is healthy. Sweat’s first game back would come against Seattle on Oct. 26.
