The Arizona Cardinals are just weeks away from entering the 2026 regular season.
Arizona is entering their third preseason contest tonight against the Dallas Cowboys, signaling a light at the end of the tunnel.
While Arizona has been exceeding expectations through two preseason games, drama remains. Arizona brass is adamant that EDGE Josh Sweat is still around the team despite being on the PUP list.
Sweat is coming off of a career-best 12 sack season in Arizona. The first year of his four-year, $76 million contract bore strong results for Arizona at first.
Things apparently shifted with the firing of Jonathan Gannon. While nothing has outwardly been confirmed, the dots do connect to Sweat signing with Arizona in large part due to Gannon. The 29-year old pass rusher being a no-show for OTA’s wasn’t a strong sign of his enthusiasm, either.
Is a trade truly an inevitability?
Sweat Remains in Trade Conversations Despite GM’s Statement
GettyIs Sweat’s time in Arizona truly done?
Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort is doubling down on Sweat remaining with Arizona. He made as much clear in a talk with media last week
From Donnie Druin of Arizona Cardinals on SI:
“We have no interest in trading Josh. We’re excited to have him,” he said. “Some of those discussions [we’re] going to keep private. But excited to have Josh here, [he] had a great year last year. Excited for more good things out of him this year.”
While Ossenfort is managing to dodge the main topic at hand, he seems steadfast in the stance that Sweat will remain a Cardinal.
This isn’t keeping the speculation from running rampant.
Is Trading Sweat Worth it for Arizona?
There are several intriguing suitors in the event of a Sweat trade.
The Philadelphia Eagles (Sweat’s former team), Green Bay Packers, and even the Dallas Cowboys make sense as landing spots.
The Packers are ready to go all-in, employ Gannon, and are seeking to support Micah Parsons to an even greater degree. The Cowboys’ defense appears to be on the upswing at the surface, but Sweat adds another layer of explosiveness.
Sweat, 29, is in his athletic prime, is making just $19.1 million per season, and is a major reason why Philadelphia won a Super Bowl just two years ago.
The opportunity cost for Arizona remains a factor. Sweat’s market value in a trade is unclear, but it wouldn’t be good business to move a double-digit sack player on a value contract for anything less than two day-two draft selections.
Arizona might be better off employing their best defensive player in 2026, regardless of potential trade requests. It’s unclear when or if Sweat is rejoining the team on the field, but one certainty is that the pass rush needs him in the fold.
Arizona kicks off the 2026 regular season against the Los Angeles Chargers on September 13.
Arizona Cardinals Star Josh Sweat Remains in Trade Conversations