Ty Montgomery had fallen out of favor with the Green Bay Packers after he costed his team in Week 8, but he’s found a good opportunity with the Baltimore Ravens.
It has been a frenetic NFL trade deadline, with Golden Tate moving to the Philadelphia Eagles and Demaryius Thomas joining the rising Houston Texans. While those were the two big moves, following Amari Cooper’s exit to the Dallas Cowboys in the previous week, the Baltimore Ravens added a versatile former wide receiver in Ty Montgomery.
Since being converted to a running back by the Green Bay Packers, Montgomery has become one of the league’s more versatile weapons. The former Stanford star came into the league as someone expected to make a splash on special teams, but judging by his poor decision (and costly fumble which prevented the Packers from coming back against the Los Angeles Rams) in Week 8, the Ravens are hoping to get more from him as a running back.
The NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport first reported the trade, adding that the Packers will receive a seventh-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft as compensation. It’s quite the modest price for a running back who can catch passes and chip in as a kick-off returner. That said, the Packers probably would have released him anyway after backlash from his teammates, so they were likely happy to get anything out of Montgomery in a trade.
Montgomery joins a Ravens backfield that has been a problem spot for years. Alex Collins will continue to lead the team in rushing attempts and goal-line opportunities, but Montgomery is a much more effective pass-catcher and rusher than Javorius Allen, whose role in Baltimore should diminish greatly.
As a whole, Allen is the biggest loser in this trade, but Montgomery could be a huge winner if he can develop a rapport with Joe Flacco. Montgomery will be out to prove the Packers wrong, and he’ll also want to prove to the rest of the league that the speculation surrounding his attitude is false. He has a huge opportunity to shine with a chip on his shoulder on the Ravens, because this is a legitimate playoff team with a quarterback that is firing on all cylinders again.
It will be interesting to see how many touches Montgomery gets on a week-to-week basis, since he’s averaged just 4.0 yards per carry this season and hasn’t been effective since 2016. Perhaps a change of scenery will do wonders for Montgomery, who is just 25 and in a contract year as a former third-round pick.