Green Bay Packers rumors already reference the elephant in the room. Should the Packers sign or trade for a running back to replace Ty Montgomery on the active roster? Montgomery was injured on a running play as he was hit hard while going out of bounds. It appeared like many hits he has taken before in his short NFL career, but Montgomery was in immediate pain and taken to the locker room.
ESPN reported live that Montgomery had suffered broken ribs, possibly indicating that he could miss some time. The Packers do have 10 days until their Week 5 game, so there is still some time for him to get back to game shape, but he would also have to play through some pain.
If the prognosis from his doctors and team trainers isn’t very good, this could also mean that the Packers have lost their starting running back for a longer length of time.
Do the Packers have other options on the roster?
Rookie fourth-round pick Jamaal Williams got a chance to show what he could do, but he too ended up having to leave the game with an injury. It was relayed that Williams has a knee injury which kept him from returning to the field against the Chicago Bears. With Ty Montgomery and Williams ruled out for the game, the Green Bay Packers turned to rookie Aaron Jones for the rest of the carries on Thursday night (Sept. 28).
Aaron Jones rushed for 49 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries, with an average of 3.8 yards per carry and a long of 11 yards on the night.
This was the first action that Jones has seen since the Green Bay Packers selected him in the fifth-round of the 2017 NFL Draft. While it’s a very small sample size, it did give the coaches a feeling for what he could do over the next few weeks.
Could Aaron Jones be the answer for the franchise?
With the 35-14 victory over the Chicago Bears, the Green Bay Packers moved to 3-1 on the season.
There were questions about the Packers’ offense following a Week 1 game against the Seattle Seahawks, but the team has scored 85 points combined in its three most recent games. The only slip came against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 2, but that Falcons roster might be even better than when the team made it to the Super Bowl last season.
Regarding the Packers’ offense, though, is it good enough to overcome a long-term loss of Ty Montgomery?
Coming into Week 4, Ty Montgomery actually led the NFL in most snaps for a running back. In fact, Montgomery was 23 snaps ahead of the second-place back on that list (Ezekiel Elliott). For the season, Montgomery has 152 rushing yards, 18 receptions, 129 receiving yards, and three touchdowns to his credit. He is an integral part of the offense for the Green Bay Packers.
With an important road game against the Dallas Cowboys coming up on Oct. 8, the Packers are in a difficult position. The primary hope is that Montgomery will be able to get back on the field quickly, but the coaching staff has a few days to figure out if Aaron Jones is “their man.” As the team usually likes to work from within its own group of players, it’s less likely that the team will try to trade or sign a significant piece. In that regard, the Green Bay Packers rumors for the next week may revolve more around how many snaps Jones will get and less about who could take the running back job.
