Detroit Lions executive vice president and general manager Brad Holmes held his end-of-season news conference on Thursday from the Lions’ Meijer Performance Center in Allen Park, Mich.
Holmes touched on a number of the Lions’ key offseason questions, including he and Detroit’s feelings on running back David Montgomery’s future with the franchise.
Montgomery’s decreased workload throughout 2025 became one of the louder critiques and questions of the Lions’ season. In a late-season stretch from Nov. 16 at the Eagles through the Lions’ Dec. 21 date versus the Steelers, Montgomery logged single-figure carries in six straight games as Detroit went 2-4 during that span of games.
Across a full 17 games worth of work, Montgomery finished with his fewest carries (158) in an NFL season in his seven-year career.
On Thursday, Holmes acknowledged Montgomery’s usage drop, and was asked if he expects Montgomery to be with the Lions next season.
“Obviously, I know that it was a tough year for him in terms of the lack of touches, and I’m not going to say that we went into it planning for it to be that way. I thought he handled it like a pro,” Holmes said.
Holmes then seemed to signal that Montgomery’s future with the franchise may be in doubt this offseason.
David Montgomery’s future with the #Lions sounds murky to say the least:
GM Brad Holmes: “… He deserves to be in a situation where his skill set can be utilized…”
His full answer: pic.twitter.com/phSWmN7vsk
— Arye Pulli (@AryePulliNFL) January 8, 2026
“Look, those are discussions that we’re going to have to have a lot more in depth in terms of what is the best plan for him going forward. Is it somewhere else or whatever the case be. But, just really appreciate everything that he has done for us if it does end up going that way.
“I hope it doesn’t, because we love David Montgomery. He’s a good football player, and wish we would have been able to get more utilization from him. I know Dan (Campbell) feels the same way, but those are conversations that we’re going to have to have because got a lot of respect for that player. He deserves to be in a situation where his skill set can be utilized. And so yeah, would love it for it to be here, but if it can’t be here, then you would have to just see what you can work out the best for him,” Holmes said.
