Bears sign Montez Sweat to HUGE 4-year, $98 million extension

It seems like just yesterday that Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles was being criticized for his trade for defensive Montez Sweat without first having a contract extension in place.

It’s probably because it was just yesterday that NFL talking heads criticized Poles for not signing Sweat to an extension.

Patience is a tricky thing for NFL media to practice.

The Bears have signed Montez Sweat to a four-year, $98 million contract extension on Saturday, according to multiple league insiders. I guess those talking heads have to find another reason to hate on Chicago now.

Sweat will receive $72.87 million guaranteed. The total deal is reportedly worth $105 million.

Sweat was likely atop Ryan Poles’ 2024 free-agent wish list. Moving a second-round pick for him at the 2023 trade deadline and getting him under contract a few days later allows Poles to enter next offseason in a power position.

Sweat is now the fifth-highest-paid edge rusher in the NFL with an annual average salary of $24.5 million.

“He’s going to allow everyone to play better,’ Ryan Poles said of Sweat after the trade, ‘our entire defensive front, our corners, our safeties.”

Kudos to Ryan Poles and the Chicago Bears. They continue to weather the storms of Mike Lombardi and his cohorts. Signing Montez Sweat to a contract extension is a big win for Poles and his regime, and big wins have been hard to come by lately for this team.