Saints and former Lions’ RB Jamaal Williams have agreed on a 3-year deal for $12 million, including $8 million fully guaranteed.

Related Players: D'Andre Swift, David Montgomery, Alvin Kamara

The writing was on the wall after the Lions signed David Montgomery, so Williams is off to New Orleans. Considering the Saints' current depth chart and the likely discipline that Alvin Kamara is facing, Jamaal has a great shot at carving out a large role with the Saints.

Lions and former Bears’ RB David Montgomery reached an agreement on a three-year, $18 million deal, including $11 million guaranteed.

Related Players: D'Andre Swift, Khalil Herbert

Per the 4for4 Free Agent tracker, the $11M guaranteed cash is the fourth-most among free-agent running backs since 2020. He should take on the Jamaal Williams role, which resulted in 17 touchdowns in 2022. Chicago has a load of draft picks, so look for them to address their RB needs with a rookie.

Khalil Herbert is being activated from IR, while Chase Claypool and N'Keal Harry should be on track to play Saturday. The news on Teven Jenkins is "encouraging" per Eberflus.

Related Players: David Montgomery

The 2021 sixth-round selection was having a great year up until Week 10, including a 20-157-2 performance in Week 3 and a 16-99-1 performance in Week 8, the latter of which came with David Montgomery in the lineup. Montgomery should hold on to the team's RB1 role, but his ceiling his further capped with Herbert's return.

The Chicago Bears are placing running back Khalil Herbert on injured reserve, according to ESPN’s Field Yates.

Related players: David Montgomery, Trestan Ebner, Darrynton Evans, Justin Fields

Herbert suffered a hip injury in Sunday’s loss to the Detroit Lions. With Herbert landing on IR, he’ll have to miss the next four games. He’s eligible to return in Week 16 against the Buffalo Bills, the story said - which is smack in the middle of the fantasy playoffs. Look for Montgomery to get an increased workload with Ebner and Evans battling for carries behind Monty. Of course Fields has been leading the way on the ground over the past several weeks.

Eberflus said the Bears really like their 1-2 punch with David Montgomery and Khalil Herbert.

The two backs were relatively even with rushing attempts vs. NE, the tweet pointed out. "We're going to continue to do that...going to continue to use both of those guys." This is probably considered bad news for Montgomery owners as Herbert's usage has been on the rise as of late, meaning Monty's is on the decline. Both can probably be in the lower-end RB2 or flex conversation.

The Bears had an extended break to prepare to face the Patriots after losing to the Commanders on Thursday night in Week 6 and one of the tweaks they made to their offense was expanding the amount of designed runs for quarterback Justin Fields.

Fields made the most of those opportunities and finished the night with 14 carries for 82 yards, including five third-down runs that turned into first downs. The added wrinkle of Fields running the ball had a ripple effect on the entire offense. David Montgomery and Khalil Herbert had strong nights running the ball while Fields converted five more third downs by throwing the ball.

Other reports said Fields had 11 designed runs on the right. Next up for the Bears is the Cowboys on the road in Week 8. With his rushing totals alone, Fields becomes a relevant QB option in just about any style of league, especially if you've been riding with Russell Wilson or Matt Ryan to this point.

“We're going to go with the hot hand,” said HC Matt Eberflus when asked about the team’s running back rotation moving forward. “Who's ever hot right there, we're going to stay with him and go from there.”

Related players: David Montgomery, Khalil Herbert

A hot hand approach signifies a slight change, according to the story. Previously the Bears had deployed a steady rotation between David Montgomery and Khalil Herbert. The Bears would give Montgomery two or three series in a row, then use Herbert for one series to give Montgomery a breather. After six games, however, it’s Herbert’s 6.4 YPC average that’s outpaced Montgomery’s 4.0 rate, the story added. The story also said Monty is a better pass blocker and could still be a bell cow, but it seems like if Herbert gets into a groove, he'll likely get more opportunities.

Bears’ RB David Montgomery was upgraded today to limited practice after not practicing Wednesday due to his ankle injury.

Related Players: Khalil Herbert

It's certainly not time to cut ties with Khalil Herbert quite yet, as Montgomery isn't a full-go for Sunday. Herbert has been incredibly efficient when given opportunities, averaging 6.1 yards per carry and 7.4 yards per reception when on the field. It's not farfetched to assume that Herbert has earned a role in the offense even if/when Montgomery returns to the lineup.

Bears Wednesday injury report
DNP: David Montgomery (ankle - no knee listed this week), Jaylon Johnson (quad), Dane Cruikshank (hamstring), Jaylon Jones (illness)

Related players: Khalil Herbert

Monty's biggest injury is his ankle at this point and he's not off to a great start this week with a DNP. Herbert would again get a bulk of the workload and be a possible RB1 if Monty can't go in Week 5.

The Bears have ruled out RB David Montgomery for Sunday’s game at the Giants.

Related Players: Khalil Herbert

Khalil Herbert has proved that he can handle the load with Montgomery sidelined, including his 169 scrimmage yards he accrued in Week 3. Herbert can safely be played as a fringe RB1 option against the Giants.