RB · HOU · GWTTKB

David Montgomery — fantasy football 2026

Every game, every stat category, and what the board says. 9.82 points per game in 2025, an ADP of 60.6, usage worth 8.6.

29 years old · 7 seasons of experience · 2019 draft class

Updated 2026-08-16 · free, no account, no paywall
Every figure below comes from our database. Where a stat is not held, the row is absent rather than zero.
ADP 60.6
Consensus across 4 books, standard deviation 10.6, 22.6 picks between cheapest and priciest. Cheapest on espn, priciest on underdog.
SLEEPER53.3
ESPN75.9
YAHOO53.6
UNDERDOG47.2
CBS59.7
FFA35

Draft-room facts

Goes aroundRound 5, pick 13 in a 12-team draft
Positional rankRB23
Bye week8
ADP standard deviation10.6 picks

What we project for 2026

Our board has him at 206.9 points, 12.9 per game — 1,057 rushing yards, 9 rushing TDs, 23.9 catches. That is RB3, 35 overall.

The range runs from a floor of 10.5 points per game to a ceiling of 17.4, with the median at 12.9. Boom rate 35%, bust rate 19%. The spread is the actual bet, not the middle number.

He goes at 60.6 on consensus and our board has him 35. We rank him 25.6 picks better than the room drafts him, so the market is underpricing him — that is the disagreement worth acting on.

Our written view

Safe round-4/5 pick — majority of Houston's RB touches and goal-line work behind a top-3 defense that should run a lot. Low bust risk.

buy · medium conviction · 2026-06-05

The offense he plays in, 2026

Houston Texans returns 5 of 6 continuity slots, replacing rb1. CJ Stroud at quarterback, Demeco Ryans as head coach, Nick Caley calling it. The offense projects to 34 pass attempts a game at high confidence and 27.5 rushes.

In: Nathaniel Dell (wr3), Lewis Bond (wr7), David Montgomery (rb1), Noah Whittington (rb4), Foster Moreau (te2). Out: Nick Chubb (rb2), Cade Stover (te2).

The projected carry split across the offense:

David Montgomery 38.8%
Woody Marks34.3%
Jawhar Jordan24.6%
Noah Whittington2.3%

Our written view on this offense in 2026

What the offense looks like: If this offense could produce at a higher level than 2025, this will be an offense you want to have pieces of. David Montgomery COULD be a very interesting high end RB2 as long as RB Woody Marks does not eat into his PT too much. Houston also has arguably the best defense in the entire NFL. they will keep them in every game & force turnovers to get this offense the ball back.

Key additions: Texans signed starting LG Wyatt Teller & starting RT Braden Smith this offseason. Also drafted C Keylan Rutledge in the 1st round. all 3 upgrades to last year. Should help protect CJ Stroud & HOPEFULLY GET A RUN GAME GOING IN HOUSTON. Traded for Lions RB David Montgomery. Joe mixon saw great success in 2024 & Montgomery COULD see a high degree of success too. Drafted WR Lewis Bond as well who does not have immediate upside.

Notes: Nico Collins remains a high producing dynasty WR when CJ Stroud plays well. Texans have to improve O line play for offense to provide large fantasy relevance. Traded for David Montgomery from the Lions & He will operate as RB1 with Woody Marks expected to also work in. CJ Stroud has struggled since his rookie season & is a mid range QB2 most weeks in fantasy. Texans do expect to extend him long term despite poor play. Jayden Higgins is an interesting year 2 breakout candidate but Tank Dell also returns in 2026 (We will see if his knee still works).

How the volume number was reached: Same QB CJ Stroud returning — anchor to 2025 actuals (34.2 att/g); Regressed 30% toward league mean 33.5, floored at 30 → 34 att/g.

How the carry projection was built

Projected carry share38.8%
Projected carries per game8.8
Projected carries, full season149
Last season, carries per game9.3

That is a reduction of 0.5 carries a game against last season, inside a team projection of 27.5 rushing attempts a game.

Basis: prior usage blend. Carry share is the strongest forward predictor we have measured at the position, so this number carries more weight than any efficiency figure on this page.

Offensive environment: HOU rates 22.5 against a league average of 23, 0.5 below it on opponent-adjusted least squares (multi-capture merge).

2026 schedule

Opponent-adjusted run defense faced, against 2025 ratings. Positive is an easier slate.

Full season+0.6 · neutral
Weeks 1–6+3.8 · easier
Weeks 12–17-0.9 · neutral
Fantasy playoffs (15–17)-5.1 · harder

Read this narrowly. Our own testing found that season-long strength of schedule does not survive as a draft input — defensive quality is among the least stable team properties year to year, and a preseason slate is built on last year's identities. The playoff-weeks column is the only one we would let break a tie, and even then it is a tiebreaker rather than a reason. The finding.

What happened when he missed time

From the absence record rather than a depth chart — who actually gained when he was out.

SeasonGames missedMain beneficiaryTheir PPR gain
20243Jahmyr Gibbs+13.6
20233Jahmyr Gibbs+7.6
Read the full David Montgomery study →

Dynasty context not redraft

Everything in this section is about his dynasty trade value — what he is worth as a long-term asset in the trade market. It is not a forecast of his 2026 fantasy scoring. A player can be a fine redraft pick while his dynasty value falls, and the reverse. The redraft read is above; this is a different question with a different answer.

Where he sits in the dynasty value cycle

His dynasty value has moved -0.9% over the last twelve months. The market cycle classifies him as stable.

For context on how long this lasts at the position: the average career at his position produces 1.7 elite seasons and 2.4 startable seasons.

The five most similar seasons, and what their dynasty value did next

Matched on production profile — production-driven (pedigree ignored). The last column is how that player’s dynasty value moved the following year — a market outcome, not a scoring one.

PlayerSeasonTheir PPGSimilarityNext year
Nick Chubb20247.959%-31.9%
Kareem Hunt20237.957%+61.5%
Devin Singletary20246.457%+6.7%
Alexander Mattison20249.856%-38.2%
Antonio Gibson20246.155%-28.4%

Of the 5 with a following season on record, 2 gained value, 3 lost it and 0 held roughly flat.

Four years of dynasty value

02,0004,0006,000202120222023202420252026
Monthly superflex value, 2020-04 to 2026-07. Down 24% across the series, peaking at 5,552.

The player

Draft capital and athletic profile

Drafted2019, round 3, pick 73 by CHI
CollegeIowa St.
Age at draft22
Height5′10″
Weight222 lb
40-yard dash4.63s
Vertical28.5″
Broad jump121″

Availability and volatility

Career PPR per game13.6
Week-to-week variation0.5
Boom rate19.7%
Bust rate14.1%
Games missed per season1.5
Injury historyConcussion, Knee, Ankle, Thigh, Ribs
Correlation between his posted line and his actual score0.13

That correlation is how closely the books’ posted line tracked what he actually scored, week to week. A higher number means the market has him figured out and there is less to exploit; a lower one means his weeks are harder to price.

Injury type matters more than games missed. Measured across our injury database, knee and foot returns stay below a player’s pre-injury baseline for all three of the first games back, while hamstring returns over-recover by the third.

The record, season by season

2025 · DET · 17 games

His best game was Week 3 against BAL — 29.4 PPR on 13 touches and a 3.8% target share, in a game that finished 38-30. His worst was Week 4 against CLE at 1.2, on 10 touches, final score 34-10. Across 17 games he cleared 20 points 1 time and came in under 8 points 7 times. In the 8 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 10.2; in the 9 decided by more, 9.5. He scored more when the game was live.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 8.6 points per game. He scored 9.82, 14.6% above it. The engine classified the season as lucky.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsCarRushTDTgt%Snap%
1GB13-278.344181125010.5%37%
2CHI52-2113.1114115713.6%39%
3BAL38-3029.411131215123.8%37%
4CLE34-101.201091204%33%
5CIN37-2418.22116186524.3%53%
6KC17-308.1223742407.4%31%
7TB24-95.923181321010.7%44%
9MIN24-271124101140111.1%38%
10WAS44-2210.1110157103.1%54%
11PHI9-164.7111062702.8%39%
12NYG34-276.7331951807.9%34%
13GB24-3112.8221683217.4%38%
14DAL44-3014.3111366013.2%31%
15LA34-419.201073212.6%28%
16PIT24-291.400041400%18%
17MIN10-2362215102506.9%34%
18CHI19-166.5111384202.8%42%

Production

Receptions24
Targets29
Receiving yards192
Carries158
Rushing yards716
Touchdowns9
Points per game9.82
Yards per target6.62
Catch rate82.76%
Yards per carry4.53

Role

Snap share37.06%
Target share5.42%
Air-yards share0.18%
WOPR0.083
RACR0.611

Efficiency

Average depth of target0.5
Yards after catch per reception8.3
Yards before catch per reception-0.3
Total YAC199
Broken tackles0
Drop rate0%
Passer rating when targeted94.3
Rushing yards over expected0
Receiving EPA per game0.18
Rushing EPA per game-0.04

Scoring position

Red-zone targets2
Red-zone target share2.2%
End-zone target share0%
Red-zone carry share38.2%
Goal-line carry share61.5%
Expected receiving TDs0.3
Actual receiving TDs0
Receiving TD luck-0.3
Expected rushing TDs7.84

Where that ranked

Against everyone in the 100+ carries pool that season:

Points per game33 of 49
Yards per target13 of 49
Target share36 of 49
Air-yards share16 of 49

Who else ate

The offense threw it 582 times. He took 5.27% of the targets. 3 team-mates cleared the competing-target threshold.

Amon-Ra St. Brown31.27%
Jameson Williams18.55%
Jahmyr Gibbs17.09%
Sam LaPorta8.91%
Kalif Raymond5.45%
David Montgomery 5.27%

Blowouts against close games

3 of his 17 games were blowouts, 14.6% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 8.13 in those and 10.21 in close games — his scoring did not depend on garbage time.

2024 · DET · 14 games

His best game was Week 11 against JAX — 24.5 PPR on 18 touches and a 9.7% target share, in a game that finished 52-6. His worst was Week 15 against BUF at 7.5, on 9 touches, final score 42-48. Across 14 games he cleared 20 points 3 times and came in under 8 points 1 time. In the 8 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 14.7; in the 6 decided by more, 17.4. He scored more when the game was not close.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 12.2 points per game. He scored 15.84, 23.5% above it. The engine classified the season as lucky.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsCarRushTDTgt%Snap%
1LA26-2016.3112179113.6%49%
2TB16-20174435113517.5%35%
3ARI20-1321.2331723105113.6%51%
4SEA42-29151140124015.3%40%
6DAL47-921110128023.7%31%
7MIN31-2983439931016%39%
8TEN52-1414.9211593325.6%48%
9GB24-1412.633231773015%56%
10HOU26-2312.61224123218.3%40%
11JAX52-624.53320157529.7%39%
12IND24-616.3333683719.1%29%
13CHI23-2015.43336218809.7%54%
14GB34-3119.455331451112.5%45%
15BUF42-487.544315407.4%30%

Production

Receptions36
Targets38
Receiving yards341
Carries185
Rushing yards775
Touchdowns13
Points per game15.84
Yards per target8.97
Catch rate94.74%
Yards per carry4.19

Role

Snap share41.86%
Target share9.07%
Air-yards share-0.25%
WOPR0.134
RACR4.144

Efficiency

Average depth of target-0.5
Yards after catch per reception10.1
Yards before catch per reception-0.7
Total YAC365
Broken tackles11
Drop rate0%
Passer rating when targeted104.1
Rushing yards over expected0
Receiving EPA per game1.14
Rushing EPA per game-0.63

Scoring position

Red-zone targets3
Red-zone target share2.9%
End-zone target share0%
Red-zone carry share40.8%
Goal-line carry share45%
Expected receiving TDs0.42
Actual receiving TDs0
Receiving TD luck-0.42
Expected rushing TDs10.49

Where that ranked

Against everyone in the 100+ carries pool that season:

Points per game16 of 46
Yards per target2 of 46
Target share26 of 46
Air-yards share16 of 46

Who else ate

The offense threw it 550 times. He took 7.32% of the targets. 3 team-mates cleared the competing-target threshold.

Amon-Ra St. Brown27.17%
Jameson Williams17.53%
Sam LaPorta15.99%
Jahmyr Gibbs12.14%
Tim Patrick8.48%
David Montgomery 7.32%

Blowouts against close games

4 of his 14 games were blowouts, 34.6% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 19.18 in those and 14.68 in close games — a meaningful share of his scoring came with the game already decided.

2023 · DET · 14 games

His best game was Week 4 against GB — 34.1 PPR on 34 touches and a 7.4% target share, in a game that finished 34-20. His worst was Week 6 against TB at 4.3, on 7 touches, final score 20-6. Across 14 games he cleared 20 points 2 times and came in under 8 points 1 time. In the 8 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 14.5; in the 6 decided by more, 15.2. He scored more when the game was not close.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 11.7 points per game. He scored 14.8, 24.2% above it. The engine classified the season as lucky.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsCarRushTDTgt%Snap%
1KC21-2013.4000217410%79%
2SEA31-3712.4117166712.9%45%
4GB34-2034.122203212137.4%71%
5CAR42-2420.9262019109122.2%75%
6TB20-64.3111961402.4%26%
10LAC41-3817.60001211610%38%
11CHI31-2617.82222127616.3%40%
12GB22-2915.1010157112.4%27%
13NO33-2812.512-1185618%62%
14CHI13-2811.53319106608.8%35%
15DEN42-1710.223-3178509.4%52%
16MIN30-2414.92214175515.1%39%
17DAL19-2012.5010146513.1%39%
18MIN30-2010000104010%49%

Production

Receptions16
Targets24
Receiving yards117
Carries219
Rushing yards1,015
Touchdowns13
Points per game14.8
Yards per target4.88
Catch rate66.67%
Yards per carry4.63

Role

Snap share48.36%
Target share5.57%
Air-yards share-0.62%
WOPR0.079
RACR-0.157

Efficiency

Average depth of target-0.8
Yards after catch per reception9.3
Yards before catch per reception-2
Total YAC149
Broken tackles3
Drop rate0.1%
Passer rating when targeted60.6
Rushing yards over expected0
Receiving EPA per game-0.58
Rushing EPA per game0.73

Scoring position

Red-zone targets1
Red-zone target share1.1%
End-zone target share0%
Red-zone carry share50.8%
Goal-line carry share60%
Expected receiving TDs0.14
Actual receiving TDs0
Receiving TD luck-0.14
Expected rushing TDs14.27

Where that ranked

Against everyone in the 100+ carries pool that season:

Points per game15 of 49
Yards per target33 of 49
Target share41 of 49
Air-yards share27 of 49

Who else ate

The offense threw it 605 times. 2 team-mates cleared the competing-target threshold.

Amon-Ra St. Brown28.72%
Sam LaPorta21.02%
Jahmyr Gibbs12.43%
Josh Reynolds11.21%
Kalif Raymond7.71%
Jameson Williams7.36%

Blowouts against close games

2 of his 14 games were blowouts, 15% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 15.55 in those and 14.53 in close games — a meaningful share of his scoring came with the game already decided.

2022 · CHI · 16 games

His best game was Week 15 against PHI — 24.1 PPR on 15 touches and a 14.3% target share, in a game that finished 20-25. His worst was Week 3 against HOU at 1.1, on 3 touches, final score 23-20. Across 16 games he cleared 20 points 2 times and came in under 8 points 5 times. In the 7 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 12; in the 9 decided by more, 10.4. He scored more when the game was live.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 11.6 points per game. He scored 11.11, 4.3% below it. The engine classified the season as neutral.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsCarRushTDTgt%Snap%
1SF19-10834241726023.5%66%
2GB10-2715.6221415122018.2%80%
3HOU23-201.100031100%17%
5MIN22-2918.244621220119%72%
6WAS7-1291113156703.8%78%
7NE33-1412.2000156210%56%
8DAL29-498.533221553013%70%
9MIA32-355.4128143607.4%70%
10DET30-315.411793705.6%66%
11ATL24-2721.134541767121.1%80%
12NYJ10-3114.334341479016.7%68%
13GB19-2816.74561461120%77%
15PHI20-2524.133381253214.3%68%
16BUF13-3510.444221662016%67%
17DET10-415.62312624016.7%54%
18MIN13-292.100072100%47%

Production

Receptions34
Targets40
Receiving yards316
Carries201
Rushing yards801
Touchdowns6
Points per game11.11
Yards per target7.9
Catch rate85%
Yards per carry3.99

Role

Snap share64.75%
Target share12.21%
Air-yards share1.74%
WOPR0.196
RACR5.896

Efficiency

Average depth of target1.3
Yards after catch per reception8.3
Yards before catch per reception1
Total YAC283
Broken tackles6
Drop rate0%
Passer rating when targeted97.5
Rushing yards over expected0
Receiving EPA per game0.42
Rushing EPA per game-0.96

Scoring position

Red-zone targets3
Red-zone target share7.1%
End-zone target share0%
Red-zone carry share40%
Goal-line carry share16.7%
Expected receiving TDs0.56
Actual receiving TDs1
Receiving TD luck0.44
Expected rushing TDs4.21

Where that ranked

Against everyone in the 100+ carries pool that season:

Points per game26 of 42
Yards per target4 of 42
Target share9 of 42
Air-yards share6 of 42

Who else ate

The offense threw it 377 times. He took 11.17% of the targets. 2 team-mates cleared the competing-target threshold.

Cole Kmet19.27%
Darnell Mooney17.04%
Dante Pettis11.45%
David Montgomery 11.17%
Equanimeous St. Brown10.61%
Chase Claypool8.1%

By quarterback

He caught passes from 3 quarterbacks that season, and the splits are not close.

QBGamesTargetsPPGY/TTgt%
Justin Fields143611.527.8312.76%
Trevor Siemian1414.38.516.7%
Nathan Peterman102.10%

Blowouts against close games

6 of his 16 games were blowouts, 37.5% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 11.1 in those and 12.04 in close games — his scoring did not depend on garbage time.

2021 · CHI · 13 games

His best game was Week 13 against ARI — 28.1 PPR on 30 touches and a 22.5% target share, in a game that finished 22-33. His worst was Week 3 against CLE at 7.5, on 14 touches, final score 6-26. Across 13 games he cleared 20 points 4 times and came in under 8 points 2 times. In the 6 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 12.3; in the 7 decided by more, 17.3. He scored more when the game was not close.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 16.8 points per game. He scored 15, 10.5% below it. The engine classified the season as unlucky. On receiving touchdowns specifically he finished 0 against 1.61 expected, a gap of -1.6.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsCarRushTDTgt%Snap%
1LA14-3418.811101610812.5%59%
2CIN20-1710.934182061017.4%80%
3CLE6-267.524211034020%82%
4DET24-1422.60002310620%62%
9PIT27-29102217136306.9%85%
11BAL13-167.7119145803%95%
12DET16-1410.43328174608.1%84%
13ARI22-3328.189512190122.5%70%
14GB30-4514.167391042021.9%84%
15MIN9-1711.356231860016.7%70%
16SEA25-2423.679612145125.7%78%
17NYG29-320.12217226426.1%68%
18MIN17-319.9237207206.5%60%

Production

Receptions42
Targets51
Receiving yards301
Carries225
Rushing yards849
Touchdowns7
Points per game15
Yards per target5.9
Catch rate82.35%
Yards per carry3.77

Role

Snap share75.15%
Target share12.1%
Air-yards share1.38%
WOPR0.193
RACR0.912

Efficiency

Average depth of target0.9
Yards after catch per reception6.5
Yards before catch per reception0.7
Total YAC273
Broken tackles3
Drop rate0%
Passer rating when targeted83.1
Rushing yards over expected0
Receiving EPA per game0.41
Rushing EPA per game-1.66

Scoring position

Red-zone targets8
Red-zone target share12.7%
End-zone target share0%
Red-zone carry share50.6%
Goal-line carry share54.2%
Expected receiving TDs1.61
Actual receiving TDs0
Receiving TD luck-1.61
Expected rushing TDs8.1

Where that ranked

Against everyone in the 100+ carries pool that season:

Points per game14 of 50
Yards per target23 of 50
Target share11 of 50
Air-yards share6 of 50

Who else ate

The offense threw it 542 times. He took 9.73% of the targets. 2 team-mates cleared the competing-target threshold.

Darnell Mooney26.72%
Cole Kmet17.75%
Allen Robinson12.6%
David Montgomery 9.73%
Marquise Goodwin7.63%
Damiere Byrd7.25%

By quarterback

He caught passes from 3 quarterbacks that season, and the splits are not close.

QBGamesTargetsPPGY/TTgt%
Andy Dalton61915.836.428.12%
Justin Fields62312.735.1313.82%
Nick Foles1923.66.7825.7%

Blowouts against close games

3 of his 13 games were blowouts, 23.8% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 15.47 in those and 12.32 in close games — a meaningful share of his scoring came with the game already decided.

2020 · CHI · 15 games

His best game was Week 15 against MIN — 29.2 PPR on 34 touches and a 9.5% target share, in a game that finished 33-27. His worst was Week 9 against TEN at 5.2, on 17 touches, final score 17-24. Across 15 games he cleared 20 points 7 times and came in under 8 points 2 times. In the 10 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 15.5; in the 5 decided by more, 22. He scored more when the game was not close.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 16.9 points per game. He scored 17.65, 1% below it. The engine classified the season as neutral. On receiving touchdowns specifically he finished 1 against 2.79 expected, a gap of -1.8.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsCarRushTDTgt%Snap%
1DET27-238.41310136408.3%45%
2NYG17-1321.733451682110.7%54%
3ATL30-267.4239144506.1%56%
4IND11-1910.736301027014.3%85%
5TB20-1918.978301029119%81%
6CAR23-1613.745391958013.9%85%
7LA10-2411.955211448013.2%83%
8NO23-2612.525162189012.2%84%
9TEN17-245.23312143006.4%65%
12GB25-4125.3564011103113.6%85%
13DET30-3427.144391772212.1%75%
14HOU36-724.5344211113112.1%67%
15MIN33-2729.212163214629.5%88%
16JAX41-1720.12226239515.6%83%
17GB16-3528.299632269122%83%

Production

Receptions54
Targets68
Receiving yards438
Carries247
Rushing yards1,070
Touchdowns10
Points per game17.65
Yards per target6.44
Catch rate79.41%
Yards per carry4.33

Role

Snap share74.6%
Target share11.93%
Air-yards share1.29%
WOPR0.188
RACR3.367

Efficiency

Average depth of target0.9
Yards after catch per reception7.3
Yards before catch per reception0.8
Total YAC396
Broken tackles11
Drop rate0%
Passer rating when targeted103.3
Rushing yards over expected0
Receiving EPA per game0.23
Rushing EPA per game-0.6

Scoring position

Red-zone targets12
Red-zone target share13%
End-zone target share0%
Red-zone carry share65.8%
Goal-line carry share66.7%
Expected receiving TDs2.79
Actual receiving TDs1
Receiving TD luck-1.79
Expected rushing TDs8.45

Where that ranked

Against everyone in the 100+ carries pool that season:

Points per game6 of 47
Yards per target15 of 47
Target share11 of 47
Air-yards share11 of 47

Who else ate

The offense threw it 614 times. He took 11.43% of the targets. 2 team-mates cleared the competing-target threshold.

Allen Robinson25.38%
Darnell Mooney16.47%
Jimmy Graham12.77%
Anthony Miller12.77%
David Montgomery 11.43%
Cole Kmet7.39%

By quarterback

He caught passes from 2 quarterbacks that season, and the splits are not close.

QBGamesTargetsPPGY/TTgt%
Mitchell Trubisky83323.068.5211.74%
Nick Foles73511.474.4912.16%

Blowouts against close games

3 of his 15 games were blowouts, 27.5% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 24.27 in those and 15.48 in close games — a meaningful share of his scoring came with the game already decided.

Ask the Coach about David Montgomery →
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