The Chicago Bears were thrilled when they managed to trade up and draft David Montgomery back in April. Some people thought it was unnecessary, but others felt the team had gotten the second-best back in the entire class. While Josh Jacobs got all the hype because of his speed and playing at Alabama, Montgomery did everything at Iowa State. He was their offense. So it’s little wonder he carries himself with some swagger. Head coach Matt Nagy loves that about him.
To those who have kept track throughout training camp, it’s clear as day that Nagy is a huge fan of Montgomery. The kid is a great fit for the offense but is also a natural leader and competitor. He’s unselfish as a teammate but wants that ball every time he can get it. Why? He knows he can do something with it. Bears fans saw that in the preseason opener against the Carolina Panthers.
On one drive alone, Montgomery accounted for 46 of the team’s 53 yards including a 7-yard touchdown run that saw him juke defender out of his shoes. After the game, Nagy was excited and couldn’t say enough about him. A day later though, it’s apparent he believes he let his excitement slip out too much and proceeded to downplay the run and Montgomery.
“Man, I pumped him up a little bit the other night. Now I’ve got to pump the brakes on him a little bit. It was an average run.”
Matt Nagy may shut down Montgomery to keep the secret
Why would Nagy have this sudden change of mindset? It goes back to gamesmanship. As a head coach, he understands secrecy is more valuable than anything in the NFL. The less an opponent knows about your capabilities, the better. That is why Nagy barely played his starters during the 2018 preseason. He didn’t want the Green Bay Packers getting any sort of idea on how he’d use his weapons on offense.
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That same principle applies here. Montgomery got some work in live game action. He dominated. Now it appears Nagy is prepared to shut the rookie down for the rest of the month.
“Put it this way. I’m going to protect David from David. Take that for what it’s worth.”
It’s plain as day that the head coach wants to limit the exposure of tape that the Packers will be able to utilize before opening night on September 5th. Given all that Montgomery can do, this is not a bad plan. It will keep Green Bay guessing as to how the Bears will line him up and just how big his contribution might be. Not to mention the different formations he could be part of. Given Nagy’s reputation for mad science as a play caller, the sky is the limit.
