Running Back David Montgomery Traded To Houston Texans

Let’s not gloss over what Montgomery meant to the Lions during his three seasons in the “Motor City.” The man was half of one of the most beloved backfield duos in recent NFL memory — “Sonic and Knuckles.” Montgomery was the bruising, punishing Knuckles to Jahmyr Gibbs‘ electric, elusive Sonic. Together, they helped make Detroit one of the most dangerous offensive teams in the league.

In 45 games with the Lions, Montgomery racked up 2,506 rushing yards and 33 touchdowns. His best season came in 2023, when he posted over 1,000 yards and a career-high 13 touchdowns in his first year sharing the backfield with a rookie Gibbs.

But 2025 told a different story. Montgomery’s role diminished significantly, with his snap percentage dropping to just 37% — the lowest of his career. He finished the year with 158 carries for 716 yards and 8 touchdowns. Gibbs had simply taken over, surpassing 1,200 rushing yards and scoring 18 all-purpose touchdowns in his third season. The writing was on the wall.

What the Lions Get Back

Detroit walks away with Scruggs, a former second-round pick by the Texans in 2023. The offensive lineman has appeared in 37 games with 20 starts, playing mostly on the interior. He’s not a flashy return, but he fills a real need for the Lions on the offensive line.

For Detroit, the path forward at running back is straightforward: Gibbs is the unquestioned lead back, with Sione Vaki and Jacob Saylors currently rounding out the depth chart behind him. Not a bad problem to have when your guy just put up 18 all-purpose touchdowns.

What Montgomery Means For Houston

The Texans needed this. Houston ranked in the bottom half of the league in rushing last season, averaging just 108.9 yards per game on the ground. With Nick Chubb heading to free agency and Joe Mixon still recovering from a foot injury that cost him the entire 2025 season, the Texans’ backfield situation was something between uncertain and concerning.

Enter Montgomery. At 28 years old, he’s not a finished product, but he’s a reliable, physical presence who can shoulder a real workload. He’ll pair with second-year back Woody Marks, who showed flashes as a rookie with 911 scrimmage yards but averaged a pedestrian 3.6 yards per carry. Montgomery’s bruising style could be exactly what this offense needs to take pressure off QC.J. Stroud.

The Bigger Picture For Both Teams

This trade says a bunch about where both franchises stand heading into 2026. For the Lions, this is a team that believes it can win now with Gibbs as the centerpiece of a dynamic offense. Trading Montgomery doesn’t weaken them — it clears cap space, adds an offensive lineman, and picks up two draft selections. General Manager Brad Holmes played this one well.

“We love David,” Holmes said last week. “He’s a great player. We’d love to have him. But obviously, a player has to want to be in a certain place as well.” Turns out, that place was Houston.

For the Texans, this is a franchise making deliberate moves to build around a young quarterback. Acquiring Montgomery on the same day they traded Tytus Howard to the Cleveland Browns shows a front office actively reshaping its roster ahead of free agency.

The Montgomery era in Detroit was a good one. “Sonic and Knuckles” gave Lions fans something to cheer about during one of the most exciting stretches in franchise history. But in the NFL, roster construction waits for no one. Not even the most beloved backfield duo in recent memory.