If the Philadelphia Eagles regret letting any player walk out the door in the last few years, it’s probably edge rusher Josh Sweat.
It turns out Sweat probably regrets it too.
Since leaving the Eagles, Sweat has seen how the other half lives after signing a 4-year, $76.4 million free-agent contract with the Arizona Cardinals after a Super Bowl win in February 2025.
ESPN’s Dan Graziano put Sweat at the top of his list of NFL players who could find new teams by the NFL trade deadline.
“Sweat has two years left on his contract, but none of the money beyond this season is guaranteed, and he did spend a chunk of the offseason in a contract dispute with the team,” Graziano wrote on October 2. “At one point, he reportedly requested a trade. I don’t want to pick on the Cardinals, who have shown a great deal of fight under first-year head coach Mike LaFleur and could well be 2-2 after this weekend. But if they do tumble out of contention, that’s not the kind of thing that makes veterans with contract gripes stop wanting out. Sweat is a Super Bowl champion who’s not yet 30 and could be very interesting to pass-rush-needy teams at the deadline. He is without a sack so far in 2026, but he had 12 last season.”
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Perhaps the biggest issue for Sweat — and the reason for his absence — is that the Cardinals suck right now and going 3-14 in 2025 was too much for him to handle after winning a Super Bowl the previous year with the Eagles.
The Cardinals have shown zero signs of life this offseason as well, and seem headed toward a major rebuild under 1st-year head coach Mike LaFleur.
“Don’t know the exact reason for the absence, but I’ve been hearing for awhile that Josh Sweat is not particularly happy in AZ,” NFL reporter Kyle Odegard wrote on his official X account on May 19.
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Sweat’s discontent in Arizona could also be tied to the fact that the man who brought him in, Cardinals head coach and former Eagles defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon, was fired in January after going 15-36 in 3 seasons in Arizona.
“Interestingly, Odegard didn’t say Sweat is in a contract dispute with the Cardinals,” Moton wrote on May 20. “He’s in the second year of his deal, but his pact has no guaranteed money beyond 2026. Coming off a career-high 12 sacks last season, the 29-year-old may want more financial security. Also, keep in mind that Sweat reunited with Jonathan Gannon, who took the Cardinals’ head-coaching job in 2023 after two years as the Philadelphia Eagles defensive coordinator. Arizona fired him in January. Sweat’s issue with the Cardinals may go beyond his contract, though a pay raise could smooth things over with the premier pass-rusher.”
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