Ryan Pace says he's happy with Bears' running back depth at start of training camp

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Second-year back David Montgomery sits alone atop the Chicago Bears' running back depth chart, with Tarik Cohen, who's more of a satellite player than a true running back, entrenched as the No. 2 behind him. Then there's Ryan Nall, the third-year pro who's spent most of his career on the practice squad, as the third-teamer.

And that's it.

Well, not entirely. Undrafted rookie Artavis Pierce has a chance to make some noise assuming he returns from the Reserved/COVID-19 list in time. There's also Napoleon Maxwell, the college free agent from FIU, whose odds of making the 80-man training camp roster improved because of Pierce's designation.

Montgomery. Cohen. And Nall. Is that really a good enough running back stack to enter the 2020 season for a Bears team that so desperately needs its running game to get on track? 

According to Ryan Pace, the answer is yes.

“I feel like with David (Montgomery), we’re going to continue to see him progress and we’re really happy with the way that he performed last year,” Pace said on Wednesday during a Zoom call with reporters. “Definitely arrow up. Tarik (Cohen), everything that we can gather as far as his mental mindset right now, his approach to this season, we’re excited about Tarik. I like his approach. You factor in Ryan Nall, who we like, who’s growing here in our organization. So I’m excited about our running back room. 

"I think it’s a talented room and we like our depth in there.”

If Montgomery suffers a training camp or early-season injury, will Pace really think the depth is good enough? It's more likely the Bears would turn to unsigned free agents (maybe Devonta Freeman?) as an alternative if that doomsday scenario presents itself.

And remember: we're talking about Montgomery as if he had a rookie season like Josh Jacobs (Raiders). He didn't. Montgomery averaged just 3.7 yards per carry en route to 889 yards and seven touchdowns. His numbers were pedestrian, yet he's being counted on to be more than just a guy in Year 2.

Cohen is coming off his worst season as a pro last year. He had just 213 rushing yards and was ineffective as a receiver, totaling just 456 yards on an embarrassing 5.6 yards per catch. We should see improved play from him by default; he's way too explosive to repeat such a down season. Plus, he's playing for a new contract. Money is a fantastic motivator. 

Pace might feel comfortable about his running back depth in late-July, but he may want to add some insurance to the position group for the grind that's coming in September and beyond.

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