There is no doubt that the Detroit Lions need some help on the edge. We saw them deal with a lot of injuries to starters this season and then we saw the depth guys get hurt too.
There’s obviously the Myles Garrett option and the Lions could look to do that, but there are some cheaper options out there via trade and the Lions could look to sign guys in free agency as well.
Bleacher Report’s Mitch Milani has a suggestion for free agency and that is the Lions signing Eagles Super Bowl standout edge rusher Josh Sweat.
“I view him as a good Detroit Lion. I think he’s got the ideal skill set to complement Aidan Hutchinson. He’s not an overwhelming pass rusher, but he can certainly take advantage of matchups, as we saw in that Super Bowl. You can give him a matchup one on one, and he’ll feast. He can win with finesse and dip and bend, and he can win with length and power as well. You know, he’s got a really good just compliment of moves and compliment of skill set. Aidan Hutchinson is one of the best pass rushers in football who’s constantly, you know, being asked basically to beat double teams. So Detroit could desperately utilize another rusher on the opposite side that can also just feast on the other side.”
Sweat is coming off a big Super Bowl that saw him put up seven pressures and three sacks. He should have been the game’s MVP, instead that honor went to Jalen Hurts.
Sweat is not a guy that’s going to get home all the time. He had eight sacks for the Eagles in 2024, but much like Hutchinson, he can bring pressure like crazy. He had 54 pressures during the season. That led Philadelphia.
In terms of cost, this is a significantly cheaper move than Garrett would be. Sweat is going to get paid after his Super Bowl performance, but not at a level that’s going to lead the league or anything like that.
Cap expert Joshua Queipo has his contract projection set at three years, $50.2 million with a $16.75 million per year average. That’s not bad at all considering Garrett is sitting at $19 million this year and $20 million in 2026.
Keep an eye on Sweat in free agency. It makes sense.