Report: Montez Sweat's heart condition might have been misdiagnosed at combine
Mississippi State pass rusher Montez Sweat was diagnosed with a heart condition at the NFL scouting combine, and that caused some teams to adjust their draft ranking of him. Some reportedly took Sweat off their boards.
On Thursday, that story took quite a turn. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport said that teams believe the issue might have been misdiagnosed. According to an expert, Rapoport said, Sweat might not have hypertrophic cardiomyopathy as first feared.
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That certainly changes the outlook for a player who, before the combine, was considered a possible top-10 prospect. And he still might be a top-10 pick, especially after the latest news.
The reasons for the possible misdiagnosis
Rapoport said there might have been a mistake in his diagnosis, and if that’s true, hopefully it’s not one that hurts Sweat’s draft stock.
According to Rapoport’s report, it’s believed when the doctors measured the thickness of the wall of Sweat’s heart, they might have included the papillary muscles. That would have led to the diagnosis of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, the thickening of the heart wall.
Rapoport said the thickness of Sweat's heart wall is actually one-and-a-half centimeters, not two.
With the draft approaching fast, teams will have to figure out what to do with this information on Sweat’s condition, or lack of a condition.
Where will Montez Sweat be drafted?
It’s possible the diagnosis at the combine didn’t affect Sweat at all.
Rapoport said some teams weren’t worried about the condition. He’s still considered an elite prospect; Yahoo Sports’ Eric Edholm ranks Sweat as the No. 8 player in this draft class.
The pre-draft news that Sweat might not have a heart issue certainly can’t hurt his stock. He’ll be one of the more interesting cases in a first round that is becoming more unpredictable by the hour.
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Frank Schwab is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdown.corner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @YahooSchwab
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