The Detroit Lions have several players listed as questionable for the Week 17 game against the Minnesota Vikings, including running back David Montgomery.
Montgomery was a late addition to the injury report this week with an illness. After practicing in full on Monday, the veteran running back did not practice on Tuesday before turning in a limited session on Wednesday and drawing the questionable designation.
With just hours to go before the crucial Week 17 contest against the Vikings on Christmas Day, here's what we know about Montgomery's chances of playing.
Is David Montgomery playing today?
UPDATE: According to NFL Network's Mike Garafolo, Montomgery is indeed expected to play on Thursday.
"Lions RB David Montgomery, listed as questionable with an illness, is expected to go," Garafolo reported.
END OF UPDATE
We don't have a definitive answer on Montgomery's status, but there's a very good chance he plays.
It's rare for a player to miss a game due to an illness, and given the importance of this contest for the Lions, that makes it even less likely Montgomery will sit out.
We also saw a bit of progress for the veteran running back on Wednesday after he was upgraded to a limited session, so that's a good sign for him.
We'll get final word on Montgomery's status around 3 p.m. ET, when the Lions and Vikings release their inactives.
David Montgomery start or sit advice
It has been a tough season for Montgomery, who could finish with the lowest rushing yards output of his career.
As a result, Montgomery ranks as RB30 overall in fantasy points per game, which makes him a fringe flex option each and every week.
The problem for Montgomery is the Lions are featuring Jahmyr Gibbs more in 2025, and while Detroit has said repeatedly it wants to get Montgomery more involved, that has not happened.
Since Week 11, Montgomery has not tallied more than eight carries in a game, and his passing-game work has remained very limited. In that span, Montgomery ranks as RB47 overall.
Montgomery faces a less than ideal matchup in Week 17, with the Vikings giving up the 12th-fewest fantasy points per game to backs this season.
However, in his previous outing against the Vikings, Montgomery did tally 40 rushing yards and one touchdown while adding two catches for 10 yards.
Even still, Montgomery simply isn't getting enough work to justify putting him in starting lineups in what is a fairly tough matchup this week.
Verdict: Sit
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