Montez Sweat returned to the Chicago Bears on Tuesday after serving a two-game suspension, stepping back into the lineup after a punishment that cut into both his pay and his standing with the team. The defensive end was suspended for violating the NFL’s performance-enhancing substance policy, and he said the mistake was accidental.
Sweat said the time away from the team was devastating. He also said it cost him $2.3 million in base salary for the two games he missed, while the remaining $12.7 million guaranteed this season and all future guaranteed money were voided. That is the hard edge of this case: even if the violation was unintentional, the financial damage was immediate and far wider than the missed checks.
Chicago brought Sweat in from the Commanders in 2023 and signed him to a four-year, $98 million contract, banking on the pass rusher to anchor its defense. He has not been producing at that level this season, with two sacks in five games in 2026, after 10 sacks last season and 5.5 sacks in 2024. The Bears needed him back on the field, but the return also reopened a story that is as much about trust as it is about talent.
Sweat declined to say what he took, and that silence leaves the key detail unresolved even as the suspension itself is over. He said he, not his nutritional staff, was responsible for the mistake, called it accidental, and added that he never wanted to cheat the game and is moving forward. He also said it was tough to look coach Ben Johnson in the eye after doing something detrimental to the team, a reminder that the punishment did not end when he walked back into the building.
The Bears now get their pass rusher back, but the cleaner outcome stops there. The league penalty has already taken money off the table and left future guarantees in doubt, and Sweat will have to live with that while trying to make the football part matter again.
