Who Should I Start? David Montgomery or Kaleb Johnson

Tuesday, July 22, 1:52 PM

DetroitLions.com's Tim Twentyman reports that he's seen Detroit Lions running backs Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery on the field together over the first three training camp practices, maybe more than he can remember in the last two years. It appears that new offensive coordinator John Morton likes the Gibbs-Monty combination and the pressure they can put on opposing defenses. Despite the presence of Montgomery in Detroit's backfield, Gibbs is a surefire top-five fantasy RB entering his third NFL season. The former first-rounder has been a Pro Bowler in both of his seasons and ran for 1,412 yards and a league-high 16 touchdowns on 250 carries a year ago, adding 52 catches for the second straight year, 517 yards and four more TDs. Montgomery is dangerous in his own right and had 1,000 yards rushing in 2023, but he's not the all-around stud that Gibbs is.

Friday, August 15, 9:20 AM

According to Andrew Fillipponi, Pittsburgh Steelers running back Kaleb Johnson is unlikely to have a big role on offense early in the season. Johnson still needs to work on his pass protection and pass-catching ability before taking on a bigger role. It's still fairly early in training camp, so things could change from now to Week 1. The expectation is that Jaylen Warren will be the lead back to start the season. After that, Johnson and Kenneth Gainwell figure to get mixed in as change-of-pace backs. If Johnson improves quickly, he could see his role on the team grow rapidly. The Steelers are high on Johnson after taking him in the third-round, but it seems like the rookie back still has things to work on before he's ready to take on a larger workload.