- Taylor Swift – Style – Qwanny’s Version | Q3 Media Super Bowl Ad
- 10 Greatest Wide Receivers that NEVER Won a Super Bowl
- 10 Best Christmas Day Performances in NBA History
- The Beast: The Final Fight | Documentary | A Qwality Film
- The Beast: The Final Fight Trailer
- The Crush Podcast: Broncos Lose Again, Kelce the Clout Chaser
- Qwality Sports: Ben Gordon Interview, Talks Time in NBA and His Workout Mindset
- AFC South Sports Betting Preview
- UFC London Aspinall vs Blaydes
- Take A Guess: The Sports Trivia Game Show Hosted by DeQwan Young | Episode 29
2020 Chicago Bears Preview: Running Back
- Updated: September 10, 2020
(Photo: Nuccio DiNuzzo, Getty Images)
David Montgomery enters the 2020 campaign as the starting running back. A groin injury suffered in training camp was a setback, though the timetable for the injury suggests he could be ready to go week one. It’s worth noting here, though, that injuries of the sort can linger or be re-aggravated easily. Thus, depth cannot be taken for granted.
A third-round draft pick a year ago, Montgomery was a favorite of the fan base quickly due to a college tape that looked quite a bit like that of Alvin Kamara. After splitting true RB snaps with Mike Davis early, by week 4, he was the guy. He finished his rookie season with 889 yards on the ground, averaging 3.7 a carry. In addition, he racked up 185 receiving yards on 25 catches. Montgomery is a hard runner who needed to learn that he doesn’t have to try to run through everybody. Reports from camp indicate that he has learned that lesson and looks more agile than he did a year ago, in part due to a due diet that no longer includes beef jerky or donuts. His skill as a receiver out of the backfield adds an extra dimension to his game and makes him a great fit for Matt Nagy’s offense.
Tarik Cohen returns as, nominally, a running back, but in practice, an offensive Swiss Army knife that Coach Nagy can use to screw with opposing defenses. For the bast two seasons, Cohen has accumulated more receiving yards than rushing yards, though both numbers were markedly down last year. In 2019, Cohen’s yards per rush fell from 4.5 to 3.3 and his yards per reception fell from 10.2 to 5.8. His rushing was frustrating at times a year ago, as he had a tendency to try to take runs too far to the outside. His lack of production wasn’t entirely his own fault, as the run blocking left something to be desired. In addition, due to the lack of quality tight end play, opposing defenses were able to key in on Cohen as the Bears’ “move” player and set their defense accordingly. As a result, the man known as Chicken Salad wasn’t able to live up to that nickname and the Bears were stuck with a bunch of fowl excrement on offense. Cohen also returns punts for the Bears.
Cordarrelle Patterson gets mentioned in this section as the Bears are planning to expand his role in the running game this season. In his first season as a Bear in 2019, he had an equal amount of rushes and targets. The rushes went for more yards, 103 to 83. Patterson was mostly a receiver during his stints in Minnesota and Oakland, then Bill Belichick said “hey, what if we try to use this guy as a running back?” and it worked. So now, Matt Nagy is doing it, too, and is looking to give Patterson a bigger role in the offense than he had a year ago. His versatility gives Nagy another weapon in his fight against the sanity of opposing defensive coordinators. Patterson also returns kicks for the Bears. A year ago, he was named both a Pro Bowler and an All-Pro for his skill as a kick returner, as he averaged 29.5 yards per return with a touchdown. It was the third time in his career that he earned those honors.
Twitter: @KSchroeder_312
