PHOENIX -- Ty Montgomery enters this year with his only position as a running back. The question now is whether he’ll be the starter in Green Bay or part of a tandem.
Packers coach Mike McCarthy spoke about Montgomery on Wednesday at the annual NFL meeting, and he said Montgomery “has that ability” to be a featured rusher like Green Bay used to have in Eddie Lacy. But McCarthy also said the Packers will add depth to the position, possibly even free agent Adrian Peterson.
Fantasy owners would like to see Montgomery as the starter with Lacy gone as a free agent to Seattle, and he played well when given an extended look in 2016 after Lacy got hurt and James Starks struggled and was injured. McCarthy expressed confidence that Montgomery could handle that role.
“He’s a very talented young man,” McCarthy said. “Very bright. Obviously he understands the whole perimeter part of the offense now. His utilization and the variation that he gives us as far as alignments and assignments and the different things he can do will definitely benefit us as far as our offensive scheme. He just needs to have a great offseason. This is a big opportunity for him.”
McCarthy said Montgomery needs to prove he can handle the demands of being a starting running back, especially since he’s a converted receiver. As McCarthy put it, running back is “very demanding. It’s a heavy lifting position. So availability will be Ty’s No. 1 statistic.” And last year, Montgomery only had one game with double digits in carries, but it was a dominant performance in Week 15 at Chicago (16 carries for 162 yards and two touchdowns).
He didn’t become a featured part of the offense until Week 6, but he finished the season with 77 carries for 457 yards (5.9 yards per carry) and three touchdowns and 44 catches for 348 yards. He led all running backs with at least 70 carries with 5.6 yards after contact (the next closest was Oakland’s Jalen Richard at 3.6), and he had five games with at least 80 total yards or a touchdown in his final 11 games. He also had two games with 10 catches in Week 6 against Dallas (10 catches for 98 yards) and Week 7 against Chicago (10 catches for 66 yards).
It’s clear that Montgomery is talented, and we’d like to see what he can do in a featured role. McCarthy said he prefers a three-down back, and we hope Montgomery takes advantage of this opportunity.
“When I view running backs, I want them to play all three downs,” McCarthy said. “When you have situational players it puts a hiccup in your flow. This game is about flow and attacking your opponent. The more a guy can play first, second and third down, obviously he has more value.”
But it might not be Montgomery’s decision on how much he plays if the Packers bring in Peterson or a high draft pick to sit atop the depth chart. McCarthy made it clear more running backs are needed with only Montgomery, Christine Michael, Don Jackson and fullback Aaron Ripkowski currently on the roster.
An ESPN report said the Packers considered bringing in Peterson for a visit, which would be interesting considering the rivalry between Minnesota and Green Bay. McCarthy didn’t rule out the Packers having interest in Peterson, 32, who was released from the Vikings this offseason.
“We’re looking at all players,” McCarthy said. “Adrian Peterson is someone we have great respect for, obviously playing him the number of times that we have. We’re trying to improve our offense all the time. As far as what’s going on, we don’t discuss those things publicly. I think it’s obvious when you look at our depth chart ... We’re going to have more running backs. I don’t know when they’re going to get there, but we will have more running backs come to Green Bay, I promise you that.”
And Fantasy owners will just have to wait if any additional running back (or backs) coming to Green Bay will supplant Montgomery as the potential starter or complement him. We’ll adjust our rankings accordingly as well, likely after the NFL Draft.
But there’s still a strong chance that Montgomery is the No. 1 running back for the Packers this year. If that’s the case then he should be considered a solid No. 2 Fantasy running back in all leagues, and he’s worth drafting no later than Round 5 in standard leagues and Round 4 in PPR.
Montgomery, the running back, could be headed for a breakout season this year.
