Green Bay Packers: Ty Montgomery is the 2017 Secret Weapon

The Stanford product is coming into his third season with the Green Bay Packers. After a productive 2016, Montgomery should blossom into a lead back in 2017.

Everyone knows the story on Ty Montgomery. He was a former 3rd round pick turned running back by the Green Bay Packers.

Montgomery took over running back duties around week 7 during 2016. He finished 2016 with 457 rushing yards on 77 carries. He also caught 44 passes for 348 yards.

Almost all of Montgomery’s stats came after week 7. He did have one ten catch game in week 6, but prior to that, he was very quiet.

Montgomery is easily the number one back coming into the season despite the Green Bay Packers drafting three other running backs.

Jamaal Williams, Aaron Jones, and maybe even Devante Mayes will get their chance to find time on the field. All three guys were very productive runners at the college level and could make an impact right away.

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However, this is Montgomery’s backfield, and he should be given the brunt of the work. Montgomery also benefits from an entire offseason of actually being a running back, and he should be even better than he was last year.

First, let’s take a look at his rushing outputs per game last year. From week 7 to week 17, he had 451 total rushing yards. That includes one DNP, a 162-yard game, and a one carry game.

Since he is now a full-time running back, with a full offseason under his belt, I don’t see how he doesn’t double his rushing yards if he stays healthy. 1,000 yards is realistic but probably unattainable.

The offense for the Green Bay Packers is very difficult to predict. Sometimes Mike Mccarthy will commit a little more to the run, and other times he’s slinging the ball around. A lot of that also depends on how bad the Packer’s defense is playing that game.

It’s very hard to guess, but it’s realistic that Montgomery could average 10-14 carries a game. There might be games with more, and hopefully there are aren’t too many with less. He averaged almost 6 yards a carry last season, so he needs to be given the carries.

Montgomery also can be huge for the Packers in the passing game. Let’s start with his pass blocking, maybe the most important thing for a Packers running back.

He excelled at that aspect and kept Rodgers on his feet. Look, if a running back can’t block in this offense he won’t play.

Montgomery also affects the passing game with his actual catching ability. The former wideout caught 44 passes, and 34 were after he switched to running back.

It’s always kind of boggled my mind that the Green Bay Packers have never really had a big passing catching back. You’d think they would try to add a Dion Lewis or Shane Vereen type of wrinkle.

Regardless, Montgomery showed he could catch the ball out of the backfield last year. Since he’s already a great blocker, he’s going to see time on passing downs.

Realistically, he could catch 50 or more passes. Whether that happens or not with all the Packers weapons is hard to say.

After an offseason where he could focus solely on the running back position, Montgomery is in line for a very productive year. A couple things could hold him back though.

First, he needs to stay healthy. He’s had problems staying on the field in the past. Second, if not right away then at some point the rookies will cut into his workload. However, that could be a good thing. It could definitely help keep him fresh.

The third and final factor into Montgomery’s workload will be how the offense operates. If the defense improves at all, one has to believe that there will be more carries for him. When Rodgers and the offense have to score 35+ points a game to win, there isn’t much room for the running game.

If he can stay healthy, there’s no reason he can’t have a big season. He will be a little overlooked coming into the season, as teams now have to also prepare for Bennett and Kendricks as well. 1000 yards from scrimmage or bust in 2017.

2017 Prediction- 185 carries 875 yards 5TDS, 51 receptions 365 yards 3TDS

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