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Washington Football Team training camp profiles: Edge rushers

By Ian Cummings

LANDOVER, MD - NOVEMBER 17: Ryan Kerrigan #91 of the Washington Redskins warms up before the game against the New York Jets at FedExField on November 17, 2019 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)
LANDOVER, MD - NOVEMBER 17: Ryan Kerrigan #91 of the Washington Redskins warms up before the game against the New York Jets at FedExField on November 17, 2019 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) /
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CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA – DECEMBER 01: Montez Sweat #90 of the Washington football team during the first half during their game against the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium on December 01, 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images)
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA – DECEMBER 01: Montez Sweat #90 of the Washington football team during the first half during their game against the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium on December 01, 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images) /

Montez Sweat

Experience: 2nd season

Draft Status: 2019 first-round pick, 26th overall

2019 Stats: 16 games, 16 starts, 50 total tackles, 7.0 sacks, eight tackles for loss, two forced fumbles, two pass deflections, 13 quarterback hits

2020 Outlook: It took some time for Montez Sweat to catch on in his rookie season. In his first eight games, he only logged 1.5 sacks, experiencing substantial growing pains as a first-year edge rusher going up against NFL tackles. That was to be expected, somewhat; Sweat wasn’t as flexible or refined as Chase Young coming out.

But Sweat caught fire as the year went on, showing off his upside in spurts. With 6-foot-6, 260-pound length and near-4.4 explosiveness, he accumulated 5.5 sacks in the final half of the 2019 campaign. His length gives him a solid foundation to anchor as a run defender, but as he learns new ways to use it as a pass rusher, he’ll only become more consistent. Serving as a full-fledged defensive end, as opposed to a 3-4 outside linebacker, should also help with that.

Expected Role: Sweat will presumably hold down the starting spot opposite rookie Chase Young. Ryan Kerrigan will likely rotate with both of them, but Sweat will probably earn a greater snap share on his side of the line, simply due to his experience edge on Young and proficiency as a run defender.

Status: *copy*: “Do I even need to say it? Roster lock. Heavy-duty padlock.” *paste*

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