David Montgomery goes all-out. On Sunday in Cincinnati, he had to take it all in. That was "the first thing I did when I stepped on the field" he said, "just being able to look around, and be in the moment, and be where my feet are." Then his feet, and his arm, helped lift the Lions to their fourth win in a row.
Montgomery hadn't played a game in his hometown since he was a dual-threat quarterback at Mt. Healthy High School when his mother was breaking her back to put food on the table for Montgomery and his three siblings. His life has changed significantly in the 10 years since, for better and worse. He's an NFL running back making millions of dollars, carrying almost unimaginable burdens.
Montgomery's sister was waiting for him in a wheelchair outside the Lions' locker room before he took the field Sunday. They beamed when they saw each other, and embraced. It was her first time attending one of his games since she got into a car crash last year that left her paralyzed from the neck down. Her nine-year-old son, who was diagnosed with cancer a year before her accident, was on hand, too.
One of Montgomery's childhood idols, Vince Turnage, may have been watching from above. He was a local track star and football teammates with Montgomery's older brother when he was murdered in high school. These are scars for Montgomery that likely feel more like open wounds in the city where he grew up.
"You could see the emotion he was dealing with, being back here," Jared Goff would say after the Lions' 37-24 win. "I wanted him to score so bad."
With the Lions three yards from the end zone early in the second quarter, they broke out a play they've been practicing for a couple weeks. Montgomery lined up in the wildcat like he was turning back time, took the direct snap, faked a run, then flicked a pass to Brock Wright for a touchdown to put the Lions up 14. For Montgomery, throwing the ball "brings back fond memories." To make a new one "where it all started for me was a super special moment."
"We put in that play for him to throw a little tuddy," said offensive lineman Christian Mahogany.
Montgomery admitted with a smile that he "was a little nervous because I hadn’t greased up my arm today, but I was able to get downhill, drop back a little bit and throw a little dot to Brock." But as Goff would say, the passing touchdown wasn't enough: "We need to get him in the end zone himself."
Leading 21-3 in the third quarter, the Lions had the ball near midfield. They gave it to Montgomery on the next six plays until it was 28-3. He dropped a defensive linemen with a jump cut on a long run, then danced into the end zone two plays later thanks to more fancy footwork in the trenches. While he can steamroll defenders with his 230-pound frame, Montgomery takes a lot of pride in "being my size and being able to move," in being more than a power back.
He's a "heartbeat," said Dan Campbell, for a team whose pulse is strong and steady.
"Everybody respects David Montgomery, and I think everybody roots for that guy, because that guy will do anything for his teammates," said Campbell, who was the exact same way as a player. "He lays it on the line on Sundays, he lays it on the line in practice. You know what you’re going to get out of David Montgomery. ... He’s going to do whatever it takes. He’ll stick his face up there in protection, he’ll run the dirty runs, he’ll run downfield to make a block for a teammate in the pass game. He’s all f**king team, excuse my language. Love the guy, we’re fortunate to have him. He’s a stud."
Montgomery grew up rooting for the Bengals. Cincy still roots for him, even when he's on the other side. His sister got a fist-bump from a Bengals fan in front of her after Montgomery's rushing touchdown, and Montgomery was deeply grateful to the Bengals for ensuring that she got down to the field to see him, a moment that he called "super, super, super meaningful."
"When David faces adversity, he presses forward and gives it his all," said linebacker Derrick Barnes, who enjoyed a homecoming of his own after growing up in Covington, Ky., across the river from Paycor Stadium. "He deserves everything that comes his way. He's an amazing running back and an amazing person. To see him out there getting touchdowns and doing it in his city is unbelievable."
A deep, sometimes solemn thinker, Montgomery said the whole day "was exactly how I dreamed it to be." Not only did his sister, and his nephew, get to see him play, "I was really happy that she was able to see me win," he said. When Montgomery left the field, chants of "D-Mo! D-Mo!" followed him up the tunnel.
"I think it’s special," he said, "to know that my city still supports me. They’re behind me."