The Chicago Bears made a big deal at the 2023 NFL trade deadline, sending a 2024 second-round pick to the Washington Commanders for defensive end Montez Sweat. The trade was widely derided by most of the NFL media, but now five games into his Chicago tenure, the move is paying dividends for Bears defense.

The Monsters of the Midway are back in 2023, and it seems like it’s all thanks to Montez Sweat. Before the trade deadline deal that sent Sweat to the Midwest, Chicago was 2-6 with one of the worst defenses in the league. Through those eight games, the Bears defense was 28th in points allowed per game (27.3), 23rd in yards allowed per game (341.0), 30th in passing yards allowed per game (262.3), 32nd in sacks (10), and 22nd in takeaways (nine), per NFL research.

However, since acquiring Sweat, those numbers have all jumped dramatically in the last five games.

The Bears defense is now ninth in points allowed per game (18.2), fifth in yards allowed per game (272.2), fifth in passing yards allowed per game (180.6), T-22nd in sacks (11), and T-2nd in takeaways (11). Most importantly, the team is 3-2 with Sweat on the defensive line.

Now, some of this coincides with Justin Fields coming back and playing better. With the offense holding the ball, the defense isn’t on the field for 2/3 of the game, so that helps, too. Still, you can’t deny the impact Montez Sweat has had on the team, which is why the trade and the four-year, $98,000,000 contract extension (with $62,864,888 guaranteed and an average annual salary of $24,500,000) Sweat signed with the Bears now seems like a much better deal.