Josh Sweat

BIOGRAPHY

Josh Sweat was born on March 29, 1997, in Chesapeake, Virginia. He is a defensive end in the NFL.

In his early years, Sweat attended Oscar F. Smith High School where he was a Consensus five-star defensive end, ranked No. 1 in the nation at his position by 247Sports and Scout in the 2015 recruiting class. He tabbed the country’s fifth-best overall player by Scout, sixth-best by 247Sports, No. 11 by ESPN and No. 34 by Rivals and was unanimous No. 1 prospect in Virginia. He was rated as the second-best defensive end in the nation by Rivals and No. 3 by ESPN and only played in two games as a senior. As a junior, he had 94 tackles, 31 tackles for loss and 22 sacks and was named to the 2015 Under Armour All-America Game.

After he finished high school, Sweat committed to the University of Florida State where as a freshman in 2015, he played in all 13 games, starting nine, finishing with 41 tackles, 5.0 TFL, two sacks, an interception, three pass breakups, three quarterback hurries and three fumble recoveries en route to Freshman All-America Honorable Mention accolades from CampusInsiders.com. His 41 tackles are tied for 21st on FSU’s all-time list for tackles by a freshman. He wrapped up the season tied for the ACC lead and ranked seventh nationally in fumbles recovered. Sweat made his collegiate debut in the season opener against Texas State where he finished with three tackles and made his first career start at Boston College where he finished with three tackles including a TFL. He recorded a season-high six tackles three times including at Georgia Tech and his lone interception on the year came against the Yellow Jackets when he tipped a pass into the air and caught it for his first career INT. He also added his first career sack against Georgia Tech. Sweat closed out his freshman season with a career-high two TFLs, including a sack and a pass defended against Houston in the Peach Bowl and was recognized as one of FSU’s Top Newcomers of the Year on defense at the end of the year banquet. 

As a junior in 2016, Sweat made 10 starts and appeared in 12 games, finishing with 41 tackles, 11.5 TFLs, 7.0 sacks, a pass breakup, a forced fumble, and six quarterback hurries, where his 7.0 sacks ranked third on the team and came in the season’s final eight weeks. He helped the Seminoles finish No. 1 in the nation in sacks per game with 3.92 and No. 2 in overall sacks with 51.0 and was outstanding against the run game, helping the Noles rank No. 21 in the nation in rush defense with 128.0 rush yards per game. He led FSU in tackles at Syracuse with a career-high eight stops and tied for the team lead against No. 13 Florida, added 1.5 sacks against both the Orange and Gators and also forced a fumble against Florida. In his junior season in 2017, Sweat started 12 games, recording 56 tackles, 12.5 TFL, 5.5 sacks, and three pass breakups and led the team with 5.5 sacks. He was named to the pre-season Nagurski Award watch list and made his presence felt in the season opener against No. 1 Alabama, producing five tackles and a sack on 2016 SEC player of the year Jalen Hurts. He went on a dominant three-game stretch vs. No. 13 Miami, at Duke and vs. Louisville, totaling 18 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks and turned in a season-best performance against Louisville, totaling nine tackles, two tackles for loss and a sack on the 2016 Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson. He also made a tackle for loss and a sack against rival Florida. After he graduated from college, Sweat entered the 2018 NFL Draft where he was selected in the fourth round by the Philadelphia Eagles. 

On September 18, 2021, Sweat agreed to a three-year, $40 million extension with the Philadelphia Eagles. A few months later, he was named to his first Pro Bowl, replacing Nick Bosa who was unable to attend due to an injury.