T’Vondre Sweat Is Worth The Gamble For the Bengals
Syndication: The Record
Perhaps the biggest departure for the Bengals in the 2024 offseason is nose tackle DJ Reader, who departed for Detroit on a two year deal. Even though Cincinnati signed Sheldon Rankins to take his place on the line, the Bengals still lack a true nose tackle.
One name that has popped up frequently as a solution is Texas defensive tackle T’Vondre Sweat, whose 2023 season was as massive as he is.
T'Vondre Sweat has been named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year! @TvondreSweat 🤘 pic.twitter.com/ewE8dZAcry
— Texas Football (@TexasFootball) November 29, 2023
He was named a unanimous All-American and First Team All-Big 12. He also took home the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year award and the Outland Trophy (best interior lineman on either side of the ball in college football). He also had a PFF grade of 91.7, which includes a run defense grade of 92.0.
All of this would make him an automatic early selection in the 2024 NFL Draft, right?
Right?
Uh oh.
Promising NFL Texas DT Draft T'Vondre Sweat prospect arrested for DWI #NFLDraft https://t.co/5eYB4d9m4x
— Ronen Seliger (@nensta3) April 9, 2024
A player who was once seen as an early day two selection now finds himself slipping to day three. Teams have also shown concerns over his work ethic, conditioning, and weight.
Unfortunately, Sweat’s red flag’s don’t stop there.
I think it's worth noting that Dane Brugler has Texas DT T'Vondre Sweat graded as a fourth-round player.
"Party animal" and "class clown" were the words to describe him.
— Marcus Mosher (@Marcus_Mosher) April 10, 2024
Even with the red flags, if T’Vondre Sweat is available in the early part of day three, or even the end parts of day two, he is worth the gamble.
At his best, he is an elite run stuffer. He’s incredibly strong and physical on the defensive line, a good athlete for his size, and can be an anchor of the defensive line. His WalterFootball scouting report compared him to, of all people, the recently departed DJ Reader.
Now that Reader has departed, the Bengals lack a true run stuffer. As of now, the Bengals’ current defensive tackles, along with their PFF run defense grades from 2023, are: BJ Hill (63.3), Sheldon Rankins (38.2), Jay Tufele (44.7), and Zach Carter (49.1). Meanwhile, Josh Tupou (50.3), who saw extended playing time when Reader went down with his season ending quad injury, remains unsigned.
The Bengals allowed the seventh most rushing yards in the NFL last year, and it was in a season where DJ Reader was on the roster for the majority of the season. Now that he has departed for Detroit, unless Cincinnati uses draft capital on a nose tackle like Sweat, that ranking could get even worse. In a division where you have to face Derrick Henry, Nick Chubb, and Lamar Jackson twice a season, the ability to stop the run is critical.
The concerns are there, though. For starters, Sweat getting a DWI at an incredibly inconvenient time only adds to his reputation as a player who enjoys the party lifestyle. The adjustment from college to the NFL, where football players become rich overnight, will be one that will have to be heavily managed.
There are also concerns with his weight. While his weight of 366 pounds will be a red flag to some teams, it was the weight at which he flourished in 2023. One of his green flags is that he is a quick athlete for his size.
https://twitter.com/RGIII/status/1763307842369442078
At the NFL Combine, Sweat said that he uses the criticisms of his weight as self-motivation.
“I like it because it gets me off my b*tt,” Sweat said. “I know myself and I know my body, (and) I can’t sit around for weeks or just a week, because if I sit around for a week, I gain 30 pounds. I know for a fact I can’t do that, so I just sit there for a day or two, take some time for myself, meditate, and go about my business.”
There are likely some teams that have taken him off of draft boards entirely due to these concerns. There is a possibility that the Bengals, who place a heavy emphasis on locker room culture, may be one of those teams.
However, they have shown interest in the star defensive tackle. They have brought him in for a Top 30 visit. Zac Taylor attended the Texas Pro Day, where he paid special attention to both Sweat and Byron Murphy, who is widely expected to be a first round pick.
Bengals coach Zac Taylor is here watching T’Vondre Sweat and Byron Murphy II. The Bengals have pick 18 in the upcoming NFL draft. pic.twitter.com/goykbQd36X
— Caleb Yum (@YumCaleb) March 20, 2024
(That posture, tho. Chef’s kiss.)
Sweat is far from the only defensive tackle in the draft. He also isn’t the only one the Bengals have shown interest in. They’ve brought in LSU’s Maason Smith, Auburn’s Justin Rogers, Texas A&M’s McKinnley Jackson, and Cincinnati’s Jowon Briggs for Top 30 visits, in addition to a host of other players for various other visits.
However, after Sweat, the talent drop off at nose tackle, which is one of the Bengals’ biggest needs, is stark. The risks are fairly significant, and his stock has justifiably fallen farther than any player’s stock in this year’s draft. If it pays off, however, it will solve a huge problem in Cincinnati.
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