You have to love March! College Basketball has its madness, and the NFL rosters begin their construction for the upcoming season! That’s just the beginning of what goes down this month. But before we get to NFL Free Agency, we have to discuss the first big NFL trade to impact fantasy football leagues for the 2026 NFL season between the Detroit Lions and the Houston Texans.
For those who missed the complete trade details: The Lions traded away RB David Montgomery to the Texans for a 2026 fourth-round pick, a 2027 seventh-round pick and of OG Juice Scruggs. Now, let’s discuss the fantasy football impact of this trade!
The Fantasy Football Impact of David Montgomery to the Texans
David Montgomery & Houston Texans Impact
Coming into the 2026 season, the only notable running backs on the Texans roster were Woody Marks and Joe Mixon, as Nick Chubb was set to enter free agency. This trade easily makes David Montgomery the RB1 in Houston.
The former Iowa State Cyclone gets an upgrade. He should see more carries than 185 in 2024 and 158 in 2025, as he won’t be stuck behind Jahmyr Gibbs. Still, this is only a slight upgrade, and Montgomery remains an RB2.
The Texans have a subpar offensive line right now, and it doesn’t help that they traded two offensive linemen on the same day. They sent Tytus Howard to the Browns before dealing Scruggs to the Lions. So, the Texans solved their workhorse running back problem, but they will need to address that offensive line problem.
Marks will be more of an RB4 with low RB3 upside. I do believe he will play a role in the pass game, as he quietly had an 8.7 Yards Per Reception (YPR), the 23rd best mark for all running backs last season. Also, he had more receiving touchdowns than rushing touchdowns last year! The problem is that he won’t come close to the 196 carries he saw last year. This has now become Montgomery’s backfield.
Meanwhile, Joe Mixon will likely be released after missing all of last season with a foot injury. At this point, until we get a clear answer on what even happened to Mixon, he’s a figment of your imagination.
Detroit Lions Impact
Jahmyr Gibbs was already going to be an RB1 with Montgomery on the team. Now, without him, the Alabama product shouldn’t fall outside the top five in non-superflex fantasy football leagues. Gibbs will be looking to regain the RB1 crown in Points Per Reception (PPR) leagues that he won in 2024. He’s now gone back-to-back seasons with 240+ carries for 1,200+ rushing yards and 13+ rushing touchdowns. That’s alongside 50+ receptions for 500+ receiving yards, four-plus receiving touchdowns and 21+ fantasy points per game. That was while splitting time with Montgomery, so a slight uptick is to be expected!
The more intriguing part is who will replace “Knuckles” of the “Sonic and Knuckles” duo. Currently, the Lions have RBs Kye Robichaux, Jacob Saylors and Sione Vaki on the roster behind Gibbs. Sadly, none of those float my boat as an RB2 for the Lions.
Simply put, general manager Brad Holmes will address this in free agency and/or the NFL Draft. Whoever is the replacement will definitely be an intriguing option to replace Montgomery, who had 700+ rushing yards, eight-plus touchdowns and 9.8+ PPR points per game in each of his three seasons as a Lion.
Thanks for reading “The Fantasy Football Impact of David Montgomery Traded to the Texans.” If you’re looking for more fantasy content like this or need help with the last-minute fantasy football start/sit decisions for your roster, you can find me on Facebook at “Fantasy Sports Start or Sit’Em Questions,” Twitter/X @FSSOSEQ or on BlueSky!
*Photo Credit: Cara Owsley/The Enquirer – USA TODAY Sports*
