David Montgomery Fantasy Outlook Could Be Better Than Expected as Bears' Potential 'Every-Down Back'

When the Chicago Bears traded Jordan Howard to the Philadelphia Eagles, some analysts thought the team was preparing to give Tarik Cohen a feature back role. However, the Bears spent a third-round pick on Iowa State's David Montgomery in April's 2019 NFL Draft, who has since become the likeliest candidate to get most of Howard's 250 carries from 2018.

While the Bears were already optimistic about Montgomery getting early-down work, it seems like he's really improved as a pass-catcher as well. Howard, whose struggles catching the ball have been well documented, saw 50 targets as a rookie in 2016, catching 29 passes.

If Montgomery can approach those numbers in his rookie season, he could really outperform his current average draft position (ADP) of RB22, according to FantasyPros.com. He'll have to contend with Cohen (RB30) for passing-down work, but most of the reports out of training camp have been positive for Montgomery as both a runner and receiver.

Currently being drafted as a low-end RB2, Montgomery has the upside for a much bigger year if he can secure a little more work as a pass-catcher. Howard finished as the RB9 in his 2016 rookie season, and if Montgomery is used more frequently in the passing game, he has a shot finish even higher.

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Max Staley is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Max Staley also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username mstaley1212. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.