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There was a time not too long ago when many were wondering what the Chicago Bears would do at running back without David Montgomery to start the season. Montgomery, who suffered a groin injury during training camp practice on Aug. 26, was believed to be out anywhere from two to four weeks.
Montgomery, like many, feared the worst at first. Especially with reports that he was carted off the field. (Note: The practice field is a good distance from the facility, so a cart was necessary.)
“I thought I tore something, actually,” Montgomery said, via ChicagoBears.com. “Just how it happened, when it happened, what it looked like after it happened. Really just trying to be sure that it wasn’t as serious as I thought it was. Luckily there wasn’t a tear, so to the grace of God, I’m able to get back to rehab and training so I can get back on the field.”
But Montgomery appears to have recovered quickly from his groin injury — as he practiced in full both Thursday and Friday — and his availability for Sunday’s Week 1 opener against the Detroit Lions is more than favorable.
“I feel like the injury was a bigger deal in the media than it really was here,” Tarik Cohen said earlier this week. “He bounced back off of that so fast; it’s like it never happened. He’s already back doing the things you love to see him doing: running hard and making that first person have a tough day tackling him. I just see him having a great year this year.”
With a presumed strong emphasis on the run game this season, the Bears are going to need Montgomery to take the lead. But Montgomery is also being smart about this whole thing. He doesn’t want to rush back too quickly and risk hurting himself worse and ultimately hurting his team
“Your best ability is availability,” Montgomery said before practice on Thursday. “With me, it’s being sure I take care of myself. I’d be hurting the team more if I was to come back earlier than I was supposed to and continue to be hurt and hurt myself again. So I hurt the team, but I hurt myself, too. The biggest thing is being smart with myself, being smart with my body and being sure I communicate with the training staff and the coaches to let them know how I feel.”
After practicing in full both Thursday and Friday, there’s a good chance that Montgomery will be ready to go Sunday against the Lions.
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