What's the thoughts on David Montgomery?

[kcBlitzkrieg 17]

4 hours ago, AxeElf said:

In his limited touches, Montgomery averaged 3.0 yards per carry.  You LIKED that?  Davis averaged 3.8, and even Trubisky averaged 3.7.

Some would say that the cream is already on top...

You watch him play or just look at the box score the next day? 

[shutdown 40]

I thought Montgomery looked good on his limited carries. 

I also think the bears running game as a whole gets a boost from this game, because one thing should now be obvious to everyone.  Mitchell Trubisky is not a NFL starting QB.  If the bears want to win games, they'll play Seattle football and use their elite O-line and defense and smash teams because putting the game in Mitchell's hands is a mistake.  Hopefully he'll be able to throw off of play action because the bears will run so much.  I know it's one game, but this isn't Mitchell's first issue with reading defenses and making accurate throws.  I'd assume the packers game plan of keeping him in the pocket and making him read defenses will be replicated until the bears can show they can beat that and I think the best way to beat that is to use their talented line and backs rather than make the QB the focus of the offense.  I fear that will be hard for Nagy, a former QB, to recognize.

[Bills04 46]

"I fear that will be hard for Nagy, a former QB, to recognize."

 

I read Nagy commented after the game that he only had 15 running plays of 65 (!).  He said he and the coaches need to work on that.  No sh!t!!

[RoadLizard 73]

As others have said, he looked the bst out of the 3 RBs I saw.  Only watched half the game though.  Either way, the Bears are NOT scaring anyone offensively so far and while it will improve as the year goes on you feel like this will be a textbook "multi-headed attack".  Id stay away unless you can stash him for later or maybe next year.

[rallo 132]

9 hours ago, AxeElf said:

Both players?  Who's the other player?

This bet didn't include Hyde?

[Hawkeye21 1,855]

Way too much overreaction from people after just one game.  I'm not surprised though.  If Nagy can get over his desire to stay dedicated to this style of offense then things should be fine.  He needs to balance things out a lot more.  Having Mitch throw the ball over 40 times is a HUGE mistake.

Montgomery should be used as the main back.  Davis should be used to spell him when needed.  Cohen should be used as a change of pace back, used split out and in the backfield with Montgomery.  I feel like I could call a much better game than Nagy with this offense.

[Skinny_Bastard 154]

After watching him DMO (yes, i made that sh!t up) play, i'm confident he'll take over the second half of the season.

Not many running backs can catch that 20+ yard pass the way he did.   He looked good running the ball.....think the coaches want to get their money's worth with Davis early in the season.  You don't trade up to pick DMO in the 3rd round to put him in a 3 headed RBBC.  That's just silly.

[weepaws 2,461]

The silly thing about it is, he’s in a three way RBBC.  

As the season goes on Montgomery will start to take over more and more. 

But Cohen is to good in space in the passing game to just keep on the bench, and Davis gives them a good quality back up. 

I just see Montgomery having some rb2 games, and more games like last night. 

Plus the bears need to find a first rate Qb, I’m not a Trubisky fan last season and what I saw last night nothing as changed. 

From what I read Montgomery did look sharp and strong when he did touch the ball, so that’s encouraging. 

Good luck. 

[kutulu 1,551]

25 minutes ago, Hawkeye21 said:

 

Montgomery should be used as the main back.  Davis should be used to spell him when needed.  Cohen should be used as a change of pace back, used split out and in the backfield with Montgomery.  I feel like I could call a much better game than Nagy with this offense.

This... Thanks for saving me the time of typing this out. 

[Gipaldo 8]

what a horrible NFL opening game after all the hype

DM owner in one league and already expecting the worse.  He looked okay, but no RB is going to produce with a 3 back RBBC

[Hawkeye21 1,855]

8 minutes ago, Gipaldo said:

what a horrible NFL opening game after all the hype

DM owner in one league and already expecting the worse.  He looked okay, but no RB is going to produce with a 3 back RBBC

Are the rest of the games this week going to look just as bad?  It was very obvious that it was the first game for both teams.  At least in college most teams play a cupcake opponent the first game as a warm up.  Maybe they need to actually have the starters play in at least one preseason game to get the kinks out.

[weepaws 2,461]

Sorry if you where pulled in and spent three hours watching the game. 

Highlites work much better, and it takes about ten min. 

 

[stonewall 647]

Well, he did outperform Aaron Jones...

I thought GB played a really good defensive game, especially up front. I actually liked what I saw tonight from DMont. Kid is a gamer, and Nagy was giving the veteran Davis his due. I can live with that. I've always liked Mike Davis and, not surprisingly, Davis looked just fine (and I have him cuffed to DMont), but even in very limited touches, DMont showed what he has to offer. The cream will eventually rise to the top imho.

Nagy is no fool....he must realize that he let that game slip away from him. If he had pounded the ball on 1st and 2nd down more with DMont, letting him break some tackles and wear down that GB defensive front a bit, I suspect things might have turned out quite differently. If he's as good of coach as I think, I doubt he forgets that.

David Johnson (who DMont reminds me off) touched the ball a total of 44 times (including receptions) in the first 10 games of his rookie season, with a total of 118 yards rushing during that span, but ended the season with over 1000 total yards and 12 TD's. Let's see how this thing plays out, shall we? 

I'd recommend buying low.....

 

(edited to add that the bet between AxeElf and myself was that DMont would end the season as a FF non-ppr RB1 if healthy for all 16 games.)

Edited September 6, 2019 by stonewall

[LoOnAtIk 75]

27 minutes ago, stonewall said:

Well, he did outperform Aaron Jones...

I thought GB played a really good defensive game, especially up front. I actually liked what I saw tonight from DMont. Kid is a gamer, and Nagy was giving the veteran Davis his due. I can live with that. I've always liked Mike Davis and, not surprisingly, Davis looked just fine (and I have him cuffed to DMont), but even in very limited touches, DMont showed what he has to offer. The cream will eventually rise to the top imho.

Nagy is no fool....he must realize that he let that game slip away from him. If he had pounded the ball on 1st and 2nd down more with DMont, letting him break some tackles and wear down that GB defensive front a bit, I suspect things might have turned out quite differently. If he's as good of coach as I think, I doubt he forgets that.

David Johnson (who DMont reminds me off) touched the ball a total of 44 times (including receptions) in the first 10 games of his rookie season, with a total of 118 yards rushing during that span, but ended the season with over 1000 total yards and 12 TD's. Let's see how this thing plays out, shall we? 

I'd recommend buying low.....

 

(edited to add that the bet between AxeElf and myself was that DMont would end the season as a FF non-ppr RB1 if healthy for all 16 games.)

Aaron Jones was facing the number 1 run defense from last season and they’re clearly still a dominant unit.

 

The bears drafting of Montgomery has been nothing short of a head scratcher for me. His numbers were solid in college but he went to a small school and his combine numbers were terrible.

 

Why has there been so much hype on this guy?

[IGotWorms 3,315]

Trubisky was focking terrible

[LoOnAtIk 75]

On 9/1/2019 at 8:57 PM, stonewall said:

If he can stay healthy, the next David Johnson....third rounder and everything.

This is asinine.

[LoOnAtIk 75]

On 9/1/2019 at 8:48 PM, AxeElf said:

Only one RB has ever rushed for over 1000 yards in a Matt Nagy offense.  They have a RB who's caught 124 passes out of the backfield in his first two seasons.  They have a veteran bowling ball RB for short yardage and goalline work.  And they have a rookie.

Put the pieces together, and you get a 3-headed monster backfield that works great in the NFL, but which is frustrating for fantasy owners.

If Thursday is any indication, yes.

On 9/1/2019 at 11:01 PM, NPNG said:

The man was a tackle-breaking machine the last 2 years.  He's special.  I think his floor (barring injury) is 225 touches.  That's probably 1000 yards and 6-8 TD's.

Tackle breaking at Iowa state is a lot easier than NFL. He managed only 15 reps on the bench at the combine.

On 9/1/2019 at 9:40 PM, snatchit said:

Plus he broke more tackles than anyone  in college his last 2 year... the dude weigh's 225

 

Refer above. Was he hurt for the combine? How can he post that garbage and still get drafted relatively high? Those combine numbers combined with his bruising running style smells like a recipe for injury.

[stonewall 647]

12 minutes ago, LoOnAtIk said:

This is asinine.

Time will tell, but I certainly do get that David Johnson vibe from him. You see, I always look beyond the #'s and look for guys who are talented, yes.....but who lunch pail football players, first and foremost.

Of course I could be wrong. Fantasy football has a thousand mitigating factors at play, making it frustratingly unpredictable. However, I will stick with my opinion of the kid.....which is if he gets the burn and stays healthy, he has what it takes to produce big. 

I've been told my observations were crazy before.....so no big deal.

 

[Crystal Meth Tweekers 26]

Just from what little I watched (highlights) the Bears blew a FG chance and went for it on 4rth and 10. The kicker needs to hit those. It would have been 10-6. Then thye forced the ball to ARob in the endzone and it was picked. They were pretty close. 

[Hawkeye21 1,855]

44 minutes ago, LoOnAtIk said:

This is asinine.

David Johnson went to Northern Iowa and was drafted in the 3rd round.  I don't think anyone expected him to be the RB he was right away.  I see no reason why Montgomery can't do the same thing.  Montgomery is good.  Give him the opportunity and we will see if he can be what I think he will be.

[weepaws 2,461]

10 minutes ago, Crystal Meth Tweekers said:

Just from what little I watched (highlights) the Bears blew a FG chance and went for it on 4rth and 10. The kicker needs to hit those. It would have been 10-6. Then thye forced the ball to ARob in the endzone and it was picked. They were pretty close. 

The 2019 bears season. 

I think with that Qb that game we saw will be their season. 

Close battles all season, with a great def and a liability at Qb. 

[Hawkeye21 1,855]

1 minute ago, weepaws said:

The 2019 bears season. 

I think with that Qb that game we saw will be their season. 

Close battles all season, with a great def and a liability at Qb. 

It doesn't have to be if Nagy changes his game plan.  It shouldn't be that hard for the Bears to dominate this season with the talent they have.

[LoOnAtIk 75]

25 minutes ago, stonewall said:

Time will tell, but I certainly do get that David Johnson vibe from him. You see, I always look beyond the #'s and look for guys who are talented, yes.....but who lunch pail football players, first and foremost.

Of course I could be wrong. Fantasy football has a thousand mitigating factors at play, making it frustratingly unpredictable. However, I will stick with my opinion of the kid.....which is if he gets the burn and stays healthy, he has what it takes to produce big. 

I've been told my observations were crazy before.....so no big deal.

 

 

2 minutes ago, Hawkeye21 said:

David Johnson went to Northern Iowa and was drafted in the 3rd round.  I don't think anyone expected him to be the RB he was right away.  I see no reason why Montgomery can't do the same thing.  Montgomery is good.  Give him the opportunity and we will see if he can be what I think he will be.

David Johnson was a combine freak though. 4.5 in the 40.  25 reps on the bench. 41.5 inch VERTICAL. He’s also a good 2-3 inches taller than Montgomery so the frame is different as well.

 

He also has a 2000 yards from scrimmage 20 total TD season on his professional résumé. 

 

Time will tell but I don’t see this comparison at all.

[Hawkeye21 1,855]

Just now, LoOnAtIk said:

 

David Johnson was a combine freak though. 4.5 in the 40.  25 reps on the bench. 41.5 inch VERTICAL. He’s also a good 2-3 inches taller than Montgomery so the frame is different as well.

 

He also has a 2000 yards from scrimmage 20 total TD season on his professional résumé. 

 

Time will tell but I don’t see this comparison at all.

I really don't put too much weight on the combine.  Too many people rely too much on combine numbers.  I care about on the field performance.

[AxeElf 787]

5 hours ago, kcBlitzkrieg said:

You watch him play or just look at the box score the next day? 

LOL!

Yeah, I waited all offseason for football to come back, made a few bets with Montgomery truthers on how the rookie would be used, and then I spent the evening playing Angry Birds instead of watching the first game of the season.

Despite what his starry-eyed lovers say, 3.0 ypc looks as ugly on the field as it looks in the box score.  If he hadn't caught that 27 yard pass, Montgomery would have been good for 1.8 fantasy points last night.

His only saving grace is that what the Bears were doing obviously wasn't working, and maybe the coaches will say, "Hmmm, maybe we should run Montgomery more and see what he can do."  If that happens, and he makes the most of his opportunities, then maybe his performance can convince the coaching staff to change their offensive scheme, but as it stands now, it's exactly what I said it would be--an ugly 3-headed backfield that's terrible for fantasy owners--and statistically, Montgomery isn't even the best back in it, at least not yet.

[AxeElf 787]

2 hours ago, rallo said:

This bet didn't include Hyde?

No, the bet was that David Montgomery will not finish the season among the top 12 standard-scoring fantasy RBs.  If he is designated as "OUT" on the official pre-game injury report for any of the Bears' 16 games, the bet is nullified.

[Hawkeye21 1,855]

9 minutes ago, AxeElf said:

LOL!

Yeah, I waited all offseason for football to come back, made a few bets with Montgomery truthers on how the rookie would be used, and then I spent the evening playing Angry Birds instead of watching the first game of the season.

Despite what his starry-eyed lovers say, 3.0 ypc looks as ugly on the field as it looks in the box score.  If he hadn't caught that 27 yard pass, Montgomery would have been good for 1.8 fantasy points last night.

His only saving grace is that what the Bears were doing obviously wasn't working, and maybe the coaches will say, "Hmmm, maybe we should run Montgomery more and see what he can do."  If that happens, and he makes the most of his opportunities, then maybe his performance can convince the coaching staff to change their offensive scheme, but as it stands now, it's exactly what I said it would be--an ugly 3-headed backfield that's terrible for fantasy owners--and statistically, Montgomery isn't even the best back in it, at least not yet.

I actually thought he looked good on the field.  The play calling was terrible though.  I still think he can have a great season if Nagy gets smart.  Seems like a big IF from Nagy right now.

[AxeElf 787]

 

...Thought I could get a pic to show up, but I guess not...

[Phil Simms 11 127]

I avoided Montgomery in my drafts. Cohen isn’t going anywhere, I did get Cohen in one PPR as a second flex. 

Jacobs was my RB target 

[unclemercy 51]

21 minutes ago, AxeElf said:

If he hadn't caught that 27 yard pass, Montgomery would have been good for 1.8 fantasy points last night.

 

ohhhhh you mean the only time he was targeted? yes no reason to see why that would change.

[rallo 132]

28 minutes ago, LoOnAtIk said:

 

David Johnson was a combine freak though. 4.5 in the 40.  25 reps on the bench. 41.5 inch VERTICAL. He’s also a good 2-3 inches taller than Montgomery so the frame is different as well.

 

He also has a 2000 yards from scrimmage 20 total TD season on his professional résumé. 

 

Time will tell but I don’t see this comparison at all.

David Johnson was also a much better reciever out of the backfield. I still remember the game where he torched Iowa for 200+receiving yards... he was a matchup nightmare. I think Montgomery can be good, but Johnson is elite.

[AxeElf 787]

3 minutes ago, Hawkeye21 said:

I actually thought he looked good on the field.  The play calling was terrible though.  I still think he can have a great season if Nagy gets smart.  Seems like a big IF from Nagy right now.

What looked so good?  Here are his "highlights" (read: every one of his plays) from the game last night.  Let's review...

David Montgomery Highlights - Week 1

1st carry - Off left tackle, bounces it outside and basically goes down upon first contact for a 4 yard gain.

2nd carry - The Bears line opens up a hole left center that you could, LITERALLY, drive a truck through, and Montgomery takes what he is given, but again, he basically goes down on first contact for a 6 yard gain.

3rd carry - This time the line doesn't do its job; Montgomery runs right into the pack and goes down for a 1 yard gain.

4th carry - This is maybe the one play you could point to as Montgomery finally showing a bit of his fabled elusiveness, as he goes wide left again and bounces outside for another 6 yard gain, but really, he almost tripped over the line of scrimmage initially, and then all his stiff-arming and spin-moving gets him is about 4 yards after first contact.  Ok, it was a good run, but nothing that really screams of excellence or anything.

5th carry - Dances and hesitates at the line of scrimmage waiting for a hole that never opens, falls forward for a 1 yard gain.

6th carry - Runs left again, straight into a defender, but he bounces off and manages to get back to the line of scrimmage for no gain.

The reception - Nothing wrong with that play at all.  It was a good route and a great catch; my only criticism of it was Trubisky's fault, he kind of telegraphed the pass from the snap, but the Packers didn't take advantage of his laser focus, so the play worked.  The problem here, of course, is that the Bears already have their pass-catching back in Cohen, and they didn't seem to be too afraid to dump it off to Mike Davis, either--so I'm not sure what value Montgomery adds for one or two catches per game.

So, all you "I thought he looked good!" people; break it down for me.  What did you see last night that has you convinced that David Montgomery is going to be special--or even become the bellcow back in this offense?

 

[tanatastic 2,061]

Week 1. Let’s wait to evaluate players in games where the team scores more than 3 points and isn’t shut down. 

For what he did, Montgomery passed the eye test for me. Reason for optimism. I don’t own him.

[RepoPatrol 14]

i saw that when he was in the game he was generally the lone backfield back. Cohen was in the slot.I expect that he will be getting 50%+ of carries by week 5, which probably isn't enough for his ADP..

[stonewall 647]

1 hour ago, rallo said:

David Johnson was also a much better reciever out of the backfield. I still remember the game where he torched Iowa for 200+receiving yards... he was a matchup nightmare. I think Montgomery can be good, but Johnson is elite.

But that's just the thing....hindsight is 20/20. Hardly anybody thought DJ could be elite coming outta Northern Iowa in the 3rd round. Takes foresight, talent/character recognition, and a lot of luck to buck the prognosticators/group-think and actually get behind a guy before he even hits the field. 

Even then, you are at the mercy of coaching whims and philosophies. Heck, Arians stuck with Ellington and a washed-up Chris Johnson for 11 weeks in 2015, even though DJ was producing in his very limited touches. When he finally uncorked that bottle though....

Let's hope Nagy is smarter than Arians.

[Hawkeye21 1,855]

49 minutes ago, AxeElf said:

What looked so good?  Here are his "highlights" (read: every one of his plays) from the game last night.  Let's review...

David Montgomery Highlights - Week 1

1st carry - Off left tackle, bounces it outside and basically goes down upon first contact for a 4 yard gain. Bounces outside with a nice move and gains yards instead of getting stopped at the line of scrimmage.  Gets stopped by a great tackle.  Solid play by Montgomery.

2nd carry - The Bears line opens up a hole left center that you could, LITERALLY, drive a truck through, and Montgomery takes what he is given, but again, he basically goes down on first contact for a 6 yard gain.  Once again, another nice jump to the inside to the large hole opened up.  Runs out of one tackle from behind, gets hit from the side and falls forward into another tackler.  First down and another great run.  Give credit to the OL and Montgomery's agility.

3rd carry - This time the line doesn't do its job; Montgomery runs right into the pack and goes down for a 1 yard gain. Not a whole lot any RB would do with that play.  OL gets blown up.

4th carry - This is maybe the one play you could point to as Montgomery finally showing a bit of his fabled elusiveness, as he goes wide left again and bounces outside for another 6 yard gain, but really, he almost tripped over the line of scrimmage initially, and then all his stiff-arming and spin-moving gets him is about 4 yards after first contact.  Ok, it was a good run, but nothing that really screams of excellence or anything. Really no reason to criticize this run at all.  Was a great run and showcased what he does well.

5th carry - Dances and hesitates at the line of scrimmage waiting for a hole that never opens, falls forward for a 1 yard gain.  Probably would have gotten more yards if he just ran straight ahead.  Tried to make something happened by using his agility but nothing opened up.  It happens.

6th carry - Runs left again, straight into a defender, but he bounces off and manages to get back to the line of scrimmage for no gain. No where to go.  Play was blown up again.

The reception - Nothing wrong with that play at all.  It was a good route and a great catch; my only criticism of it was Trubisky's fault, he kind of telegraphed the pass from the snap, but the Packers didn't take advantage of his laser focus, so the play worked.  The problem here, of course, is that the Bears already have their pass-catching back in Cohen, and they didn't seem to be too afraid to dump it off to Mike Davis, either--so I'm not sure what value Montgomery adds for one or two catches per game. He shows that he's a great pass catching back by making a very impressive catch that was behind him.  Don't see how this can be a problem.  Proves he's a versatile back.

So, all you "I thought he looked good!" people; break it down for me.  What did you see last night that has you convinced that David Montgomery is going to be special--or even become the bellcow back in this offense?

 

I see a back with a lot of talent and I want to see him get the ball more.  I see nothing there that makes me think he can't play or shouldn't be used.  I want more touches.

[AxeElf 787]

34 minutes ago, Hawkeye21 said:

I see a back with a lot of talent and I want to see him get the ball more.  I see nothing there that makes me think he can't play or shouldn't be used.  I want more touches.

I think your analysis is still pretty starry-eyed, in that there's nothing there that any other competent RB in the NFL couldn't do (including Carlos Hyde).

No one is saying that he can't play or that he shouldn't be used.  But he's a cog in the machine, one head of a three-headed backfield; he shouldn't have been (fantasy) drafted in the 3rd round.  He probably should have been drafted among guys like Kalen Ballage, Latavius Murray, and Devin Singletary.  I never said he was a bum; I'm saying that the hype got out of hand, and he became a draft darling that never should have been.

[Hawkeye21 1,855]

1 minute ago, AxeElf said:

I think your analysis is still pretty starry-eyed, in that there's nothing there that any other competent RB in the NFL couldn't do (including Carlos Hyde).

No one is saying that he can't play or that he shouldn't be used.  But he's a cog in the machine, one head of a three-headed backfield; he shouldn't have been (fantasy) drafted in the 3rd round.  He probably should have been drafted among guys like Kalen Ballage, Latavius Murray, and Devin Singletary.  I never said he was a bum; I'm saying that the hype got out of hand, and he became a draft darling that never should have been.

I still think he has potential to be a top 12 RB.  Right now I think it depends on how Nagy plans on calling games going forward.  I think he has the talent to do it and they need to utilize him.  If Nagy sticks to a game plan like last night then he'll barely be a RB3 this season.  I drafted him as my RB3 in both my main leagues so I'm still happy with his value.  I played him as my flex last night.

[AxeElf 787]

3 minutes ago, Hawkeye21 said:

I still think he has potential to be a top 12 RB.  Right now I think it depends on how Nagy plans on calling games going forward.  I think he has the talent to do it and they need to utilize him.  If Nagy sticks to a game plan like last night then he'll barely be a RB3 this season.  I drafted him as my RB3 in both my main leagues so I'm still happy with his value.  I played him as my flex last night.

Fair enough.  A lot of people were counting on him to do much more for their teams.  I tried to stop them...

[LoOnAtIk 75]

42 minutes ago, stonewall said:

But that's just the thing....hindsight is 20/20. Hardly anybody thought DJ could be elite coming outta Northern Iowa in the 3rd round. Takes foresight, talent/character recognition, and a lot of luck to buck the prognosticators/group-think and actually get behind a guy before he even hits the field. 

Even then, you are at the mercy of coaching whims and philosophies. Heck, Arians stuck with Ellington and a washed-up Chris Johnson for 11 weeks in 2015, even though DJ was producing in his very limited touches. When he finally uncorked that bottle though....

Let's hope Nagy is smarter than Arians.

So why are some on here saying combine doesn’t matter? David Johnson’s combine numbers were insane.