Texans running back David Montgomery won’t play Sunday against the Los Angeles Chargers. Coach DeMeco Ryans said Wednesday, Nov. 4, that Montgomery is week-to-week with a groin injury but has made “progress,” according to Pro Football Talk.
Montgomery got hurt in Houston’s Oct. 11 game against the Titans and has sat out both games since. Sunday makes three. The Texans haven’t put him on injured reserve, which keeps a return the following week in play, as The Sporting News pointed out.
His first year in Houston hadn’t gone to plan before the injury, either. The Texans acquired Montgomery in an offseason trade, and he has 138 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 52 carries, plus seven catches for 67 yards and a receiving score. That works out to 2.7 yards per carry, per Newsweek.
Woody Marks keeps the job for now
Woody Marks has handled the backfield in Montgomery’s absence. Over the last three games he has 49 carries for 184 yards and seven catches for 63 yards, according to PFT. That’s not a breakout, but it’s a better per-carry clip than Montgomery managed before he got hurt.
Houston comes off its bye at 2-5, per The Sporting News, so Sunday’s game against the Chargers carries real weight in both the AFC South and the wild-card picture.
Why it matters
McGraw Media’s read: keeping Montgomery off IR tells you the Texans still see him as part of the plan, and “progress” more than three weeks after the injury isn’t nothing. The harder call comes when he’s healthy. Marks has been the more efficient runner, and a 2-5 team can’t afford to hand carries back on reputation. If Montgomery is ready next week, the smart move is a split that follows production, not the depth chart from August. Until then, this is Marks’ backfield, and Houston’s run game rides with him.
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