Who is David Montgomery’s handcuff? No one really wanted to draft the Chicago Bears starting running back, but his volume is impossible to ignore. He’s received 260 or more touches in every pro season. The results aren’t always pretty. However, few other players in the NFL get this kind of work.
David Montgomery’s handcuff is Khalil Herbert. The 2021 sixth round draft pick looked good filling in for Montgomery last season and you could make an argument that he is the team’s most talented running back.
Behind those two is rookie Trestan Ebner. The Baylor player received some early offseason buzz but slots in as more of a receiving back and return specialist if he sees the field at all. His production in college was nothing special and it remains to be seen just how he fits into the Bears’ plans.
Related: All you need to know about fantasy football handcuffs
Is David Montgomery’s handcuff worth stashing?
Absolutely. Khalil Herbert would be a top-20 fantasy football running back if Montgomery were to miss time. In fact, he would most likely surpass what the plodding starter manages to produce on a weekly basis. For some reason, Chicago begs to differ.
Anyway, Herbert seems to have some standalone value as a flex or bye week cover in deeper leagues. The Montgomery/Herbert touch split is roughly two-to-one. In positive game flows that results in ten or so touches, although pass heavy contests sees the number shrinks to five-ish. It’s not huge volume but this is nothing to dismiss either.
The wildcard in all this is Justin Fields. He runs a lot, including in the red zone which limits the upside of a handcuff such as Herbert. The Bears aren’t scoring a ton of points so a quarterback syphoning off potential touchdowns isn’t great. Ultimately though, he’s still worth a roster spot.
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