Chicago Bears: Grading the David Montgomery pick in 2019 NFL Draft
After waiting around for a long time, the Chicago Bears finally made a pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. Grading the selection of (and trade up for) David Montgomery
Well, the 2019 NFL Draft finally arrived for the Chicago Bears.
After sitting through all of the first and second rounds, and most of the third, the Monsters of the Midway made a pick. I guess general manager Ryan Pace felt as restless as the fans as he pulled a trade with the New England Patriots for the second straight year.
Here’s a look at the deal:
So much for not necessarily going for a running back as Pace said recently. With the 73rd overall pick, the Bears chose Iowa State running back David Montgomery. In 2018, he rushed for 1,216 yards and 13 touchdowns and added 22 catches for 157 yards. He is considered a safe pick, without having any flash or having anything jump out.
While he is not flashy, he is solid. He has good vision and size (5-10, 222 pounds). In addition, he has great balance. It is difficult to bring him down. Watching the film on him you see that he breaks a boatload of tackles.
Montgomery lacks explosiveness (something also said of departed running back Jordan Howard), but his balance, vision and decision-making make up for that. He is a patient runner who allows holes to open then hit them. Montgomery should be a good asset at the goal line and in short yardage situations with his toughness and his elusiveness.
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The concern with Montgomery is his workload over the past two seasons. He carried the ball 515 times in those two seasons and carried the ball 20+ times 13 of his last 19 games. He’s taken a lot of big hits as well. However, with Mike Davis, Tarik Cohen, and Cordarrelle Patterson also taking snaps in the backfield, he won’t need to take over the brunt of the carries.
As a pass catcher, he has soft hands and catches the ball in front of his body. I saw some drops on some easy passes but I like that he is a natural pass catcher. I look for him to improve and do a good job in that area.
Some scouts compare Montgomery to Matt Forte. If he can be just a little bit like him he’ll fit well with the Bears. I’m not sure if that comparison is fair just yet, though.
Montgomery has a great work ethic and could become a leader in the locker room. Cyclones coach Matt Campbell had high praise for him, per the Des Moines Register:
"I don’t know if this program can say enough about what he did to give back to this program in terms of his work ethic and what he did — and to put himself in a position to change his family’s lives and his life forever."
dark. Next. 2019 NFL Draft: Day 2 grades for every pick
As I said, Montgomery was a safe pick. With the running back by committee system the Bears have, he should do well. He won’t beat anyone with his speed, but he’ll break many tackles and should get a lot of opportunities in goal-line situations and help the Chicago Bears score a lot of touchdowns.
Grade: B