Lions Trade David Montgomery to Texans

David Montgomery carries the ball against his former team. | Matt Marton-Imagn Images

The Lions are moving on from David Montgomery. On Monday, Detroit traded the running back to the Texans in exchange for offensive lineman Juice Scruggs and draft picks, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. This was the second trade Houston made on Monday.

Over the weekend there was a report that Montgomery wanted out of Detroit but the running back took to social media to say, "Damn, Dmo told you that?"

A day later he was traded for Scruggs, a fourth round pick and a seventh round pick in '27.

Montgomery was originally selected by the Bears in the third round of the 2019 NFL draft. He spent four years in Chicago, averaging 3.9 yards per carry and scoring 26 touchdowns. He signed with the Lions in 2023 and had his second 1,000 yard season and scored a career-high 13 touchdowns in his first season in Detroit as he split carries with rookie Jahmyr Gibbs.

As Gibbs broke out in 2024, Montgomery's workload decreased, but he remained an important part of the offense and one half of the "Sonic and Knuckles" backfield that made the Lions one of the top offenses in the league.

Scruggs was a second round pick in '23. He started 13 games in '24 and split time last season while appearing in all 17 regular season games for Houston. He is set to be a free agent after this season.

UPDATE: This article has been updated to clarify the details of the trade.

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