Chicago Bears running back David Montgomery — along with head coach Matt Nagy — returned to practice Thursday for the first time since spraining his left knee in Week 4.
Montgomery was placed on injured reserve on Oct. 9. The team now has a 21-day window to activate Montgomery from IR to the active roster.
Nagy cleared COVID-19 protocols earlier this week, making his return to practice after eight days in quarantine. Special teams coordinator Chris Tabor took over for Nagy in last week’s loss to San Francisco. Fully vaccinated, Nagy tested positive Oct. 25.
“I was cleared on Tuesday, so I was back in the office Tuesday morning,” Nagy said. “I was able to get back in here and get back to some quote-unquote normalcy. It was awesome seeing all the coaches and really just kind of getting back on track.”
Nagy said he quarantined in a hotel room, including Sunday’s game against the 49ers.
“Watching the game was hard. You don’t like it,” Nagy said. “I just sat there, and I was nervous the whole time. I didn’t think I was going to be nervous. But I was more nervous than normal.”
Montgomery exited a 24-14 win against the Detroit Lions in the fourth quarter on Oct. 3 after rushing for 106 yards and two touchdowns on 23 carries.
Despite missing four games, Montgomery still leads Chicago with three rushing touchdowns and ranks second with 309 rushing yards behind rookie Khalil Herbert (351).
Montgomery, 24, has rushed for 2,268 yards and 17 touchdowns and caught 85 passes for 672 yards and three TDs in 35 games since the Bears drafted him in the third round in 2019.
Herbert, 23, is expected to lead the ground game for the fifth straight week on Monday night when the Bears (3-5) visit the Pittsburgh Steelers (4-3).
