While you are inching closer to your fantasy football draft, you may have to make the decision to draft either David Montgomery or Tarik Cohen. The Chicago Bears backfield has been constantly talked about leading up to fantasy football drafts.
So who should you take if the clock is ticking down and you have to decide between the two? It's a tough choice but Montgomery should be the ultimate choice between the two. Here is why.
Earlier this offseason, the Bears traded Jordan Howard to the Philadelphia Eagles. That left a majority of the ball-carrying duties up for grabs in the Chicago backfield.
As a result of Howard being traded, the Bears traded up to the 73rd overall pick to select Montgomery out of Iowa State. Besides Montgomery, Cohen figures to have an important role already secured in the offense.
So who is most likely to replace Howard's role in the offense? With Cohen being a smaller back, it's likely that Montgomery gets the majority of the carries in the Bears' rushing attack.
Last season, Howard ran it 250 times for 935 yards and nine touchdowns. Howard is at his best when he is running between the tackles and in short-yardage situations. That's where a majority of his touchdowns came from.
At 5-foot-10, 222 pounds, Montgomery is a better fit to take the carries between the tackles while Cohen is used as a receiving threat and offensive weapon. Comparatively, Cohen is just 5-foot-6, 181 pounds so he's best used in a role where he isn't taking a beating on the ground.
Besides, Montgomery is comfortable taking a ton of carries in an offense as he did in college. In his last two seasons at Iowa State, Montgomery carried it 515 times for 2,362 yards and 24 touchdowns.
On the other hand, Cohen has yet to carry it over 100 times in a season in his two seasons in the NFL. Plus, he'll likely see less carries in 2019 as Mike Davis will likely be given some run as well.
Currently, Cohen's averaged draft pick stands at 77.5 in ESPN leagues and Montgomery is right behind him, being drafted at the 78th pick in fantasy drafts. In PPR (points per reception) leagues, some may lean in Cohen's direction but Montgomery should give you the most value.
After all, Montgomery is being drafted slightly later in drafts and will likely get more touches in the offense. Undoubtedly, Matt Nagy wants to get Cohen involved in the passing game but he knows running the ball will be crucial to their success.
In 2018, Cohen caught 71 passes for 725 yards and five touchdowns as a pass-catcher. With his explosiveness, getting him the ball in open space is a focus of the Bears. Again, with his mere 5-foot-6 stature, Cohen isn't best used as a runner between the tackles.
Along with pounding the rock, Montgomery also is able to catch the ball out of the backfield too. In three seasons in college, Montgomery had 71 receptions for 582 yards. Unfortunately, he couldn't get in the end zone as a receiver.
Nonetheless, the potential of Montgomery outclasses the potential of Cohen. For Montgomery, he could easily see over 200 carries along with 30-40 receptions. Additionally, he'll see the majority of the goal-line carries, allowing him to celebrate more in the end zone.
As for Cohen, you'll be lucky if he matches his 99 carries from 2018. But he could come close to his 71 receptions from last year as they want to keep him heavily involved in the aerial attack. Regardless, if you're having a tough time deciding between the two, take a deep breath and confidently select Montgomery.
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