EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — In the aftermath of the Bears’ preseason opener against the Carolina Panthers last week, Bears coach Matt Nagy chided reporters for turning rookie running back David Montgomery’s seven-yard touchdown run into more than it was.
“Yeah, it was good,” Nagy said last Saturday after reviewing the film of the game. “It was OK. You guys were blowing it up like it was some great run. It was just average. It was good. Jeez.”
No doubt, Montgomery’s touchdown run was glorified, magnified and overanalyzed — a byproduct of the new era of preseason football where starters sit and so little is defined that we’ll jump on any solid storyline and run from one end zone to the other with it.
In reality, as much as some of us ran with the Montgomery story, the Bears have been even more excited about the rookie’s introduction to an offense he is expected to invigorate.
Montgomery’s inactivity in the Bears’ second preseason game Saturday against the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium confirmed the obvious — Nagy is sure the kid is ready to go.
Montgomery sat out the game along with every offensive and defensive starter. He’s been running some snaps with the second-team offense in practice, but Nagy wasn’t about to take that chance Saturday night. Nagy intimated as much last week when he was asked if he needs to play any more in the preseason.
“Put it this way — I’m going to protect David from David,” Nagy said. “Take it for what it’s worth.”
Montgomery and the starters might play next week in the Bears’ third preseason game next week against the Colts — formerly known as the “dress rehearsal” — to get acclimated to the pre-game process. But everything points toward a token appearance being all Nagy wants until the season opener Sept. 5 against the Packers at Soldier Field.
With Tarik Cohen and Mike Davis also not playing against the Giants, it’s clear that Nagy and the Bears are set at running back heading into the 2019 season. After trading leading rusher Jordan Howard to the Eagles, drafting Montgomery in the third round and signing Davis in free agency, the Bears have the running back group Nagy envisions for his offense to operate at peak efficiency. Cohen is the ultimate gadget back and Montgomery and Davis also have the versatility to be a threat in the passing game.
Saturday night’s game was a chance for Ryan Nall and Kerrith Whyte Jr. to state their case for a roster spot. Nall made three plays early. On second-and-11 from the Bears’ 37 in the first quarter, he gained 10 yards on a screen pass, then rushed for 14 yards for the first down. He gained three yards on third-and-two to convert another third-down en route to a Bears field goal.
Whyte scored on a tough one-yard run in the third quarter, after a seven-yard inside run to the goal line. He also had a 103-yard touchdown on a kickoff return nullified by a penalty.
But while the opportunity means everything to them, it was relatively inconsequential for the Bears. Their backfield is set. And Matt Nagy feels pretty good about what he’s got.
