David Montgomery fantasy football owners saw their worst fears realized in Week One. After an entire offseason of hype and promise for a three-down role, Montgomery split playing time with Tarik Cohen and Mike Davis. This is obviously not what fantasy football owners wanted, and Montgomery hurt everyone who had him in their lineup. Will Chicago continue their committee approach, and what does this running back usage mean for Montgomery’s fantasy value?
Fantasy Football: David Montgomery Outlook After Week One
The Bad
The bad news is that the Bears seem intent on using all of their running backs in a variety of roles. Tarik Cohen led the backfield in snaps, but even Mike Davis saw more time on the field than Montgomery. Cohen appears to be the preferred receiving back, as he recorded eight receptions for 49 yards on 10 targets. Davis wasn’t far behind, as the free-agent signee ended the game with six receptions for 17 yards. Montgomery, meanwhile, had just one reception for 27 yards.
The touches were split evenly in the running game, but that’s not exactly good news for Montgomery. Montgomery led the team with six carries, but only turned those opportunities into 18 yards. Davis didn’t do much better, as he recorded 19 yards on five carries. No matter how you split it, head coach Matt Nagy appears to be going for a committee approach early in the season. Someone like Montgomery could thrive in this role if he were in a good offense. However, the Chicago Bears are held back by a subpar quarterback.
We’ve seen enough of Mitchell Trubisky to know he isn’t a good quarterback. Chicago’s starters hardly played in the preseason, so you can blame some of Thursday’s outing on rust. However, you can’t overlook 26 games of mostly subpar quarterback play. Trubisky is a limited quarterback who needs Matt Nagy’s scheme to be even remotely successful. While Nagy successfully hid Trubisky’s flaws in 2018, it’s impossible to hide a bad player forever. It’s hard to have a good offense when you don’t trust your quarterback to throw the ball or make plays on his own. A bad offense means fewer opportunities, which ultimately hurts Montgomery’s ultimate ceiling.
The Good
The good news is that Montgomery’s role should grow in time. Based on all reports out of Chicago, the Bears coaching staff is absolutely in love with Montgomery and his skillset. Tarik Cohen isn’t much of a runner, and Mike Davis is better served as a backup. Montgomery has the ability to be a true three-down player, and he should see more action as the season progresses.
It’s not uncommon for coaching staffs to make rookies earn their time on the field. Davis took the majority of snaps in Week One, but he didn’t do anything to show he deserves an extended workload. As the season goes on, Montgomery will surely but slowly eat into Davis’ workload. While he might not see an 80% snap share in Week Two, he’ll grow into a bigger role as the season progresses.
Tarik Cohen is still going to get his playing time, but Montgomery and Cohen can coexist in an offense. Nagy appears comfortable with turning Cohen into a glorified slot receiver, as only two of his snaps took place in the backfield. If Cohen lines up in the slot and Montgomery lines up in the backfield, both players can be fantasy relevant. While obviously only one player can touch the ball at a time, it’s encouraging to know that Cohen isn’t directly blocking Montgomery’s path to the field.
Final Verdict on David Montgomery
David Montgomery is going to be a good player to own in fantasy football. While he got off to a rough start, he’s going to get better as the season progresses. Mike Davis will slowly go away while Cohen could serve as a glorified wide receiver. Montgomery has three-down potential and the coaching staff knows it.
However, that change probably won’t take place in Week Two. Davis and Montgomery are likely to split carries again, although Montgomery will probably see slightly more carries than Davis. The offense is never going to play up to its potential thanks to the underwhelming Mitchell Trubisky, and the Bears face a strong Denver Broncos defense in Week Two. You’ll probably want to sit Montgomery against former Chicago Bears defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, but you should be able to start him after that. Keep monitoring the situation and try to buy low on Montgomery if you can.
