How did David Montgomery fare as a pass catcher?
Last week we broke down the differences between all of the running backs that the Chicago Bears met with. We tried to find one of the best players that featured pass catching, elusiveness, big play potential, and three-down capabilities.
Of course, it ends with the Chicago Bears trading up for a back that they did not meet with.
With that in mind, we are going to put David Montgomery to the test. Had he been in line with all of those other candidates, where would he stack up?
Target share
David Montgomery had a 9% target share. That would have turned out to be the second best of the group of backs we talked about, behind only James Williams. He was more involved in the passing game than Miles Sanders and Darrell Henderson and is above average compared to his peers.
Drop Rate:
Montgomery stands out in this area as well. He had zero drops in college, which clearly caught the Chicago Bears eyes. Alexander Mattison and Darrell Henderson were the only other backs not to drop a pass, so while James Williams saw more targets, Montgomery had better hands.
Yards per route run
Montgomery averaged 0.83 yards per route run. He was not elite in this category but did fit in well compared to his peers. Benny Snell, Josh Jacobs, Bryce Love, Devine Ozigbo, Trayveon Williams and Dexter Williams all posted between 0.8 and 1 yard per route run. Many see Montgomery as a check-down option, but he can elude tackles out of the backfield as well.
Pass blocking
Montgomery had a pass blocking grade of 98.6. This once again would have put him in the elite category with Bruce Anderson, Bryce Love, and Devin Singletary.
So, it has become apparent that when it comes to catching the football, Montgomery would have stood out with some of the best players in the draft. Some may view him as a check-down option, but his consistency and the pop of what Tarik Cohen brings makes a lot of sense.