J.R. Sweezy will again leave Seattle, this time being set to sign a two-year deal with the Cardinals, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.
This marks another Cardinals move to bolster their offensive line. Sweezy will follow longtime Steelers right tackle Marcus Gilbert to Arizona. Sweezy’s last stay away from the Seahawks did not turn out well, with injuries dooming his short Buccaneers tenure. But he bounced back to recreate a market for himself.
The Seahawks reinstalled Sweezy as a full-time starter. He was a key blocker for a rejuvenated Seattle ground attack, one that morphed from one of the NFL’s worst over a three-year period to its best in 2018. Both Seahawks starting guards, Sweezy and D.J. Fluker, saw their contracts expire after the ’18 season.
Sweezy is entering his age-30 season. The Cardinals appear likely to plug him in opposite Justin Pugh, who last year suffered another season-ending injury. Arizona’s offensive line has struggled for multiple seasons now, and by the end of last season, backups were seeing almost all of the action, making it more difficult to evaluate Josh Rosen. The Cardinals finished with the No. 32 scoring offense and were the league’s worst team in total yardage.