Now that the dust has settled and the 2024 NFL Draft is in the books, I want to go back to reflect on something that really stood out to me a few weeks back. The Detroit Lions put out a movie that reflected on their 2023 season and in that movie there is a moment in which a coach gets up before one of the most important games of the year and tells a story that gave goosebumps and had every player listening to every word.
It wasn't Dan Campbell, it wasn't Ben Johnson and it wasn't Aaron Glenn. It was assistant head coach/running backs coach Scottie Montgomery. Go to the 47:59 mark.
Montgomery tells the story about his father having a hard attack and relates that how his father showed extreme toughness in that moment and the Lions needed be toughness in that moment. I highly recommend you watch that speech and the teams reaction to that speech.
It's hard not to watch Montgomery talk in that video and not think about how he commands the room and has the respect of his players in the same way that Dan Campbell does. The NFL seems to be leaning in the direction of having coaches that can be leaders of men over the offensive or defensive guru's that have been struggling a lot lately.
While Montgomery doesn't have any NFL head coaching experience, that might not matter. Dan Campbell didn't either. Montgomery does have head coaching experience at the college level though. He was the head coach of East Carolina for three seasons.
Outside of that, Montgomery has five years of NFL experience as a player and has worked for the Steelers and the Colts as a coach.
Montgomery has already received interest from teams for a higher role. The Buccaneers interviewed Montgomery for their offensive coordinator job last season and he's had interviews with other teams in the past.
The Lions run game was very good last year and Montgomery had a lot to do with that. It should be even better in 2024. One of the interesting things to watch is what the Lions plan to do with rookie Sione Vaki. If he can come along fast, that will be another example of what Montgomery can do as a coach.
Obviously the Lions coordinators Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn will be the hotter candidates for head coaching jobs next offseason, but Montgomery should get some looks soon since his name is getting hotter with every passing year. If he doesn't leave and Johnson does, he's the likely the top candidate to take over the offensive coordinator role.
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