We tackled the stock Bears running back David Montgomery holds as he heads into free agency about a month ago. A key concern in his situation focused on whether or not Chicago would want to bring Montgomery back. Earlier this week, Bears general manager Ryan Poles gave us the answer, according to Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun Times. 
Poles made it clear in a public forum that he has a desire to keep Montgomery in the Windy City. “I’ve always wanted to keep David,” Poles told reporters. “I love his mentality, how he plays the game. I told him that to his face. He’s part of the identity that we had this year that kept us competitive.”
That PDA is endearing and likely sits well with the fourth-year running back out of Iowa State, but it doesn’t put food on his table. Compliments alone are not going to convince Montgomery to keep the “C” on his helmet, and Poles is aware of that.
“The second part of that is just the contract situation,” the rookie GM continued. “That’s something that we’ll see how that goes and if we can find common ground. Obviously, I’ve learned that you can want a player, and the value’s got to come together for it to happen.”
The value is going to be crucial, and there are two factors to take into account when trying to determine where Montgomery’s value falls. The first is current roster. Behind only quarterback Justin Herbert, Montgomery was second on the team in rushing yards, leading all running backs in Chicago. While that seems like a plus for Montgomery, it’s likely only the result of second-year running back Khalil Herbert missing three more games than Montgomery. Despite Montgomery outgaining Herbert 801 rushing yards to 731, Herbert averaged a higher rushing yards per game with 56.2 YPG compared to Montgomery’s 50.1. The benefit in performance comparison is that Montgomery is clearly the team’s preferred receiving back after hauling in 34 passes for 316 yards compared to Herbert, who was next closest for running backs with nine catches for 57 yards.
The second factor is going to be competition. This offseason’s free agent running back class is going to be stacked with talent. Montgomery will be competing for a new contract with the likes of Josh Jacobs, Saquon Barkley, Miles Sanders, Tony Pollard, Kareem Hunt, Jamaal Williams, and others. The plethora of options has the potential to saturate the market for running backs, leading to smaller contracts. If Montgomery wants to return to Chicago, though, he’ll hold the advantage over the others due to his familiarity with the franchise.
Statistically compared to recent contracts, Montgomery matches up closest with a player like Buccaneers running back Leonard Fournette. Fournette recently signed a three-year, $21MM deal after a contract year that looks vaguely similar to what Montgomery did this season. There are two factors in Montgomery’s favor, though. Montgomery doesn’t have the significant injury history that Fournette does, and Montgomery has been far more consistent with his production year in, year out. This could point to either a three-year deal with a slightly larger average annual value or a similar annual amount with another year tacked on. If Montgomery were in a vacuum, he would likely demand something like a three-year, $24MM contract or a four-year, $28MM deal.
If Montgomery finds his way back to Chicago, it will probably not be that steep of a payday. He may find that he can earn more money by taking a team-friendly deal with the only team he’s known so far, but with the emergence of Herbert, Montgomery won’t be able to demand top dollar value. It will be up to Poles and Montgomery to reach an agreement on value. If it helps, I hear Poles is “a big David Montgomery fan.”
Justin Fields, not Herbert but yeah!!!!
Justin Fields, not Justin Herbert
Finally, Da Bears have a franchise QB. Welcome to Chicago, Justin Herbert!
Behind only quarterback Justin Herbert, Montgomery was second on the team in rushing yards, leading all running backs in Chicago.
Seems as tho the Bears like KH more than Montgomery, but don’t see either as a full-time back. With so many good RBs available..they’d be smart to sit back and let their #2 rb fall to them with some value. If that’s Montgomery, great. He’s far from irreplaceable tho
They should draft Bryce Young and then they can move Justin Herbert to running back instead of resigning David Montgomery.
He’s nowhere near the same level as the others listed so the GM can compliment him all he wants but Montgomery has zero negotiation leverage with Khalil under contract
I don’t think that David Montgomery has trouble putting food on his table.
“He’s part of the identity that we had this year that kept us competitive.”
I thought only Ryan Pace made remarks that silly.
Its all part of the dance
Any GM would love Montgomery, that’s not the problem. Its all about the bucks and what Monty wants.. But lets face it, for the most part finding RBs has not been the Bears issues over the past 10 years. Its been no O line to speak of
I’d love to have Monty back. He’s a good change of pace to Khalil Herbert, but you can find another RB pretty easy whether that’s in FA or the draft. We’ve used Monty a lot and stripped a lot of the tread off those tires. I’d rather get someone like Alexander Maddison for cheaper or draft someone like Zack Charbonnet in the 3rd or 4th round of the draft.
I guess the proof reader got fired on this one huh? Chicago, LA Chargers not even close, not even the same conference, oh well we got the gist of it. Herbert wishes he could run like Fields.