Dan Campbell saw a little bit of July 26 in David Montgomery Sunday night.
“The day before we started our first practice,” Campbell remembered following the Lions’ 26-20 overtime victory over the Rams, “and he was, he just, man, you talk about a guy who was in outstanding shape.
“He looked like he didn’t break a sweat for this thing, and then the first few days of practice he doesn’t look fatigued. And so he’s in unbelievable shape. He’s worked extremely hard and he’s just reliable.”
So reliable that Campbell and offensive coordinator Ben Johnson handed Montgomery the ball five times in eight snaps on their game-winning, 70-yard march in the extra period, including the walk-off, 1-yard touchdown. He averaged 9.0 yards per carry (45 yards) on that decisive drive.
Grit isn’t just a word on Campbell’s hats. It’s embodied in Montgomery.
“I was already locked in at that point,” Montgomery said of overtime, “where I felt like I had to prove myself. And I felt like that was the greatest opportunity for it to happen, for me to showcase what I’m capable of, but at the same time showing how much grit that that offense and this team has.”
After denying the Rams Sunday night in a rematch of their Wild Card victory, Detroit (1-0) stays home to host a rematch of its Divisional playoff against Tampa Bay (1-0) this Sunday (1 p.m. ET, FOX).