One of the favorite battle cries of NFL players cast off by their teams is “how do you like me now?” Yesterday’s cut victim, trash to some team, is another team’s treasure. They can sometimes come back to bite the hand of the team that once fed them.
In some cases, players who have become free agents are not wanted for the money and they go on to do great things for a second team. There are a handful of players who were Chicago Bears at one time and are on the rosters of the final four teams for the 2023 season, playing for the right to go to the Super Bowl.
The most obvious among them is Ravens linebacker Roquan Smith, who so famously stood his ground in contract negotiations, insisting he was worth $100 million.
“We had a difference in value,” Poles said after. So the Bears dispatched him for a second-round pick that they later used to draft Jaquan Brisker. Smith got his cash. Of course, he is doinq quite well for himself and is playing for the right to go to the Super Bowl on Sunday against Kansas City as the Ravens try to stop an offense coached by his former Bears coach, Matt Nagy.
Here are the former Bears who on Sunday can say, “How do you like me now?” to their old team if they wish. Not all of them have tremendous success stories, but their teams are still playing and the Bears have been at home watching the playoffs on TV since they started.
DETROIT LIONS RB David Montgomery The Bears third-round draft pick in 2019, Montomery was definitely a worthwhile signing by the Lions for $6 million a year over three years, although it’s not entirely clear the Bears refused to go this high to retain him.
In the end, it seemed Montgomery just wanted to play for a winner and he has. Montgomery gaine 1,015 yards as starting back in 14 of the 17 games. He gained more than that only once with the Bears (1,070). He scored a career-high 13 touchdowns and caught 16 passes for 117 yards as he split time with speedy rookie Jahmyr Gibbs.
Leave a Reply