NEWSLETTER
Chicago Bears Head Coach Matt Eberflus offered some clarity regarding running back David Montgomery’s injury during his Monday press conference (which you can watch below).
Eberflus specified Montgomery’s injury was to his ankle. In case you missed it, Montgomery suffered the injury in the first quarter of the Bears’ 23-20 win against the Texans. It occurred at the end of a play in which Montgomery was rolled up on during pass protection. Initially ruled as doubtful to return, Montgomery never came back into the game. Thankfully, Khalil Herbert was there to pick up what Montgomery left behind. Herbert even dedicated his performance to his fallen teammate.
But beyond that bit of detail specifying Montgomery’s leg injury being an ankle issue, Eberflus had nothing else of certainty to share. In one moment, he called Montgomery day-to-day, opening up the possibility of being available for Sunday’s Week 4 game against the New York Giants. Montgomery’s injury looked gnarly, so him truly being day-to-day would be a pleasant surprise. But then, in another breath, Eberflus wasn’t willing to rule out a trip to IR.
Just when you thought there couldn’t be a coach more vague with injury status updates than Matt Nagy, here comes Matt Eberflus essentially saying: Hold my clipboard.
Going on injured reserve would cause Montgomery to miss the next four games and signify a more significant injury (even if it isn’t a season-ender). But it would also open up a roster spot, which a general manager who is a master roster manipulator could take advantage of if they played their cards right.
Sure, the Bears have running back depth. But no one wants to see a popular and productive player like Montgomery land on injured reserve. And definitely not when they’re in a contract year trying to prove they can still run it to the Bears (and the NFL’s other 31 teams).
The Bears won’t offer an injury report until Wednesday. But even then, I’m not sure how much that will give us. Part of me is hoping to get some surprisingly good news. However, not getting good news immediately on Monday has me bracing for a worst-case scenario.
