Chicago Bears: 5 Players who must shine vs. Broncos in Week 2
4. David Montgomery
One of the most disappointing aspects of last week’s game was the running game. The Bears overhauled the unit, making it more athletic and a better fit in the passing game. We kept hearing about how David Montgomery was slick and hard to tackle. When he made his only preseason appearance, he showed that the talk was real and he brought excitement.
Then the season started and something happened.
Montgomery only carried the ball six times in the entire game and only once in the second half. In the passing game, he made a big catch for 27 yards, but it was the only ball thrown to him. It was almost as if he wasn’t a part of the offensive plan.
Some of this has to do with the play calling. Head coach Matt Nagy seemed to panic. He forgot that he had a new running backs unit that he could use. He did the same in last season’s opener when he could have used Jordan Howard more to seal the game.
Nagy and the Bears have a Kareem Hunt type of running back. I’m not saying he is that, but he’s built similarly and has the balance and strength to break big plays. He needs to get more involved in the offense. He and Mike Davis make a good complementary duo, but Montgomery looks like he can be the main man.
Nagy agreed that he should’ve used the running game more. The running backs only had 15 carries in the game and that certainly isn’t nearly enough for this offense to succeed. Here is what Nagy said, per the Chicago Tribune:
"“When you hand the ball off 15 times in 65 plays, that’s not enough balance,” Nagy said. “It’s one-dimensional. Even with it being a 7-3 game, I knew that. I was aware of that. But we’ll figure this thing out. We’ll get it right.”"
Montgomery needs to touch the ball more. The more he’s involved the more chances he has to break a big play. If he is having some success, it helps Trubisky as well. Having him drop back 45 times, especially in a game in which the deficit was just four points for most of the game, puts too much on Trubisky.
The Bears need to ease some of that pressure and free him up. An effective running game opens up the passing game.