Montez Sweat has been one of the most interesting players to follow heading into the NFL Draft, as he possesses top-10 talent but has had some concern surrounding him because of heart condition. However, it sounds like that concern is waning.
Sweat was diagnosed at the NFL Scouting Combine two months ago with a condition called hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, which results in a thickening of the heart wall. While you have to be a medical professional to understand all the details of it, Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that Sweat has seen multiple specialists since the Combine and the belief is that he was misdiagnosed.
From our NFL pre-draft coverage: #MSU pass-rusher Montez Sweat may have been misdiagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Two sources say the thickness of Sweat's heart wall is actually 1.5 cms, not nearly 2.0. I explain below why the risk could be much lower. pic.twitter.com/PUVsbO2tDw
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) April 25, 2019
As Rapoport noted, it is believed that the measurement of Sweat’s heart wall was improperly recorded, as a muscle was included in it that should not have been. The bottom line is that the risk associated with the condition is not as great as the initial diagnosis indicated.
Sweat is a 6-foot-6, 260-pound pass-rusher who blew teams away with his insane 40-yard dash time two months ago. Most mock drafts have the former Mississippi State star going somewhere in the middle part of the first round, but he good end up being picked even earlier now that the concerns about his health are not nearly as great.
