Montgomery gone, Homer added
One of the few mainstays the Bears had left is leaving, as running back David Montgomery agreed to a deal with the Lions on Tuesday.
Montgomery posted a farewell message to Bears fans on Instagram and thanked the team for “taking a chance on a kid who had nothing.”
Former Bears general manager Ryan Pace drafted Montgomery in the third round in 2019. He ran for 3,609 yards and 26 touchdowns in four seasons and also caught 155 passes for 1,240 yards and four touchdowns.
Over 61 games, which included one playoff game, he rushed for 100 yards eight times. But he had 24 games of fewer than 50 yards.
Shortly after Montgomery made his deal with the Lions, Bears general manager Ryan Poles agreed to a twoyear, $4.5 million contract with former Seahawks running back Travis Homer, a source said. That’s far less than the three years and $18 million Montgomery got from the Lions.
Homer, 24, was a backup in Seattle and played extensively on special teams, occasionally returning kickoffs. In four seasons, he rushed 83 times for 453 yards and a touchdown and caught 52 passes for 464 yards and two touchdowns.
The Seahawks drafted him in the sixth round out of Miami in 2019.
As much as Poles championed Montgomery, 25, as exactly the type of player and person he wanted on the team, there was little chance the Bears would pay what the Lions did for a running back. They’ll move forward relying on Khalil Herbert, who’s still on a cheap rookie contract for two more seasons, and perhaps an addition in the draft.
“I’ve always wanted to keep David,” Poles said at the end of last season. “I love his mentality, how he plays the game . . . . He’s part of the identity that we had this year that kept us competitive.
“[But] the second part of that is the contract situation . . . . I’ve learned that you can want a player, [but] the value’s got to come together for it to happen.”
Although Montgomery’s overall production wasn’t spectacular, he was by far the Bears’ best pass-blocker at the position. The Lions are betting that his numbers were skewed by the haphazard offense the Bears ran under former coach Matt Nagy, as well as the Bears’ various snafus on the offensive line.
Herbert showed promise as an electric runner his first two seasons. He broke out last season with 731 yards rushing and four touchdowns, leading all running backs at 5.7 yards per carry.
The Bears also have Trestan Ebner and Darrynton Evans on the roster, although neither has established himself.