Ty Montgomery’s move from wide receiver to running back paid dividends for the Packers in the late stages of the 2016 season and the team went all in on Montgomery as their top back this offseason by saying goodbye to the other veteran members of the backfield.
That spot on the running back depth chart is higher than Montgomery would be as a receiver on a team that also has Jordy Nelson, Randall Cobb and Davante Adams, something that Montgomery has considered when thinking about the position shift. While he knows that running backs can have a shorter window of productivity, Montgomery is fine with that because he wouldn’t be “as happy because I’m not having the amount of success that I’d like to have” if he stayed as a lower-rung receiver.
“So, would I rather be trying to be someone’s No. 1 running back than being somebody’s fourth, fifth or sixth receiver?” Montgomery said, via ESPN.com. “Would I rather be trying to make someone’s team as a fourth, fifth, sixth receiver and potentially not making as much money as I could if I played 6-8 years in the league and have the potential to make the amount of money I could at the running back position? It all came down to quality over quantity, and I want the quality of years to be what I want.”
If Montgomery continues to progress as a running back, quantity shouldn’t be an issue in the short term because he’s in line to see the ball quite often.