Texans Radio's Marc Vandermeer and John Harris give their takes on new Texans RB David Montgomery after he officially arrived in a trade with the Detroit Lions.
Vandermeer:
David Montgomery walks through the door with ability and numbers that should get Texans fans excited. He's rushed for 33 TDs in the last three years – that's six more than the full Texans running back room in the same span.
College experts will tell you that he almost single-handedly changed the fortunes of the Iowa State upon his arrival. But he'll have none of that praise, citing that this is a team game. Because not only can he play - he's a cultural mainstay.
In Chicago, he won the team-voted Brian Picolo award, twice! That honor goes to the player that "best exemplifies the courage, loyalty, teamwork, dedication and sense of humor of the late Bears running back."
After telling me how much he loved Arian Foster he also talked about the intensity, determination and hyper-focus he uses to be successful on the field. There's no question he has 'SWARM mentality' and will do everything he can to help the Texans ground attack thrive.
Harris:
On a cold December day in the COVID season of 2020, the Texans traveled to Chicago to face the Bears in a completely empty Soldier Field. To say that the whole situation was weird was an understatement but it was the Texans first trip to Chicago in eight years and I was still excited to be on site. A Texans' four minute drive to start the game yielded little, so the the visitors punted to the Bears 20-yard line.
First play, FIRST PLAY for the Bears offense and #32 took a handoff, started left, found a hole and was gone in a blink. Sitting at the 50-yard line, I could see after about three steps that we were in major trouble because David Montgomery was off to the races for an 80-yard TD to essentially put us on ice that day. He was the Bear I feared the most, respected even more, and wished out loud that he could one day be a Texan.
Five and a half years later, I have my wish. Montgomery is a Houston Texan, one of my favorite draft evaluations that I've ever done on a running back. I loved watching defenders bounce off of him as he smiled his way into the end zone when he was at Iowa State.
From afar, I always enjoyed watching him glide, power and speed his way into the Honolulu blue end zones with the Detroit Lions. Seeing him up close at our joint practice with the Lions made me love and appreciate him that much more.
He fit Detroit hand-in-glove and I believe Houston will be a similar match made in run-the-ball heaven. I can't wait to finally see one of my favorites finally play for the good guys in 2026.
