Expert States Why David Montgomery Exit Cripples Bears' Ground Attack

One of the biggest decisions made by Ryan Poles this off-season was to allow running back David Montgomery to walk in free agency. It was a bold move. The former 3rd round pick has been the steadiest offensive presence for the Chicago Bears for most of his four-year run with the organization. Last season saw the offense finish 1st in rushing. Montgomery was a core part of that success. Some felt it was too risky to let him go. Poles disagreed, feeling he could supplement the rushing attack for cheaper.

Montgomery signed a three-year deal with the Detroit Lions at $18 million. Chicago signed veteran D'Onta Foreman for $2 million and then added Roschon Johnson from Texas in the 4th round of the draft. One can make a case the Bears' running game is now deeper than last year, but is it as good or better? Brendan Walker of NFL.com doesn't think so. He called Montgomery the 10th-biggest loss of any team this off-season. His primary reasoning was the abandonment of certainty for the unknown.

"In a year when Justin Fields put the NFL on notice by rushing for the second-most yards by a quarterback in a single season (1,143), Montgomery still managed to run for 801 yards and five touchdowns. While Fields poses a dynamic threat as a mobile quarterback for one the most improved teams this offseason, Montgomery’s reliability took some pressure off Fields as he continued his development.

The Bears signed D’Onta Foreman after Montgomery’s departure in free agency. However, Montgomery has produced at least 800 rushing yards in all four of his NFL seasons. Foreman reached those marks only once (2022) in his five-year career. Perhaps Khalil Herbert (731 yards rushing last season) and rookie fourth-rounder Roschon Johnson can also help fill the void."

David Montgomery was good. Just not that good.

This isn't Adrian Peterson or Derrick Henry we're talking about. Montgomery isn't a generational player that was the sole identity of the offense. He was a solid, steady running back that averaged 3.9 yards per carry for his time in Chicago. That kind of production isn't difficult to replace. Khalil Herbert, who remains on the roster, was a far more effective runner in this offense than Montgomery. So the question is whether Foreman and Johnson can replace the 801 yards and five touchdowns he managed last season.

If everybody stays healthy, the answer should be yes. Foreman ran for 100 more yards on almost the exact same number of carries last season. Johnson might have a more complete skillset than anybody on the roster. Justin Fields remains on the roster, and he's the most dangerous running threat of them all. Losing David Montgomery was unfortunate. It was not crippling. The Bears have survived worse losses than him. Jordan Howard went to the Pro Bowl the year after Matt Forte left in 2016. Neal Anderson made the Pro Bowl a year after Walter Payton retired.

Montgomery will be missed, but not in that way.