LAKE FOREST, Ill. (670 The Score) -- Bears running back David Montgomery is entering the fourth and final year of his rookie contract without assurances for the future.
Despite the uncertainty that comes with the situation, Montgomery maintains he isn’t thinking about what’s next.
“I still got to play football, and I still got to perform,” Montgomery said Wednesday. “I could really care less about the contract.”
Montgomery, 24, was selected by the Bears in the third round of the 2019 NFL Draft, and he was brought to Chicago due to the faith that former general manager Ryan Pace and former coach Matt Nagy had in him.
Montgomery has carried 714 times for 2,808 yards (3.9 yards per carry) and 21 touchdowns over three seasons with the Bears. He rushed 225 times for 849 yards (3.8 yards per carry) and seven touchdowns in 2021.
This season, Montgomery will be playing for his second head coach, third offensive coordinator and third running backs coach.
Though Montgomery is without security beyond 2022, he doesn't view his contract status as a worry.
“I've never been about proving anybody wrong,” Montgomery said. “I've always been about proving myself right. Because at the end of the day, when it comes down to who you have trust in besides God, it has to be yourself. When I go home and I look at myself in the mirror and I challenge myself at what I did good or what I can do better, I have to face that. I have to look that man in the mirror.
“When it's all said and done, when I get done playing ball and the legacy that I leave, what my kids grow up to be, who they be and they see their dad for who they seem him as. I want them to be remembered in a positive light and their dad for who he says he is.”
Chris Emma covers the Bears, Chicago’s sports scene and more for 670TheScore.com. Follow him on Twitter @CEmma670.