Detroit Lions running back David Montgomery suffered what was believed to be a season-ending MCL tear during the team's Week 15 loss to the Buffalo Bills, head coach Dan Campbell announced. "We're going to miss him," Campbell told reporters on Monday.
However, Montgomery isn't accepting the initial diagnosis just yet. Campbell told reporters on Wednesday that the running back is seeking a third opinion on his knee injury, which is why the team hasn't placed him on injured reserve. Detroit currently has 21 players on IR, 15 of them being defenders.
Montgomery initially left the field with a knee issue in the second quarter. He remained out for a while, with Jahmyr Gibbs taking all of the snaps for the remainder of the half. Montgomery was right back in the lineup after halftime, though, until he exited again and Gibbs played the entire remainder of the game.
Montgomery was not effective on the ground against Buffalo (five carries for 4 yards) but he contributed in the passing game (four catches for 31 yards on his four targets), and he has been one half of the NFL's best running back duo this season. He and Gibbs have formed a thunder-and-lightning combination that has been grinding opponents down all season.
They have split the backfield work almost exactly equally this season, with Gibbs totaling 186 carries and 39 receptions to Montgomery's 185 carries and 36 receptions. Gibbs has been the more efficient of the two players both on the ground (5.6 yards per carry vs. 4.2) and through the air (10.1 yards per reception vs. 9.5), but the fact that they have been there all season to keep the other fresh has proven hugely valuable.
With the injuries piling up for Detroit's defense, it is even more important for the offense to be as efficient and explosive as ever, and that will be more difficult without Montgomery. This has arguably been the Lions franchise's best season to date, but as we head into the stretch run, some of the wheels are falling off what had looked like the league's most complete team until very recently.
