NFC Notes: David Montgomery, Bears, Packers, Aaron Jones, Aaron Rodgers, Jordan Love

Bears

Bears GM Ryan Poles expressed a desire to bring RB David Montgomery back and said that his playstyle fits the identity of what the team wants to be on offense.

“I’ve always wanted to keep David,” Poles said, via Bears Wire. “I love his mentality, how he plays the game. I told him that to his face,” Poles said. “He’s part of the identity that we had this year that kept us competitive.”

While Poles is adamant about wanting Montgomery back, he understands that the two sides still have to come together on a contract that works out for both parties.

“Now, the second part of that is just the contract situation,” Poles said. “That’s something that we’ll see how that goes and if we can find common ground. Obviously, I’ve learned that you can want a player and the value’s got to come together for it to happen. I love the way he attacked this season. That’s a guy that does everything right. You all watched his tenacity, his fight. I’m a big David Montgomery fan.”

Aaron Jones

Packers GM Brian Gutekunst expects that RB Aaron Jones will be back in Green Bay next season, despite the fact that he will have a cap hit of more than $20 million in 2023.

“Certainly, we expect to have him back,” Gutekunst said, via Pro Football Talk.

Aaron Rodgers

Gutekunst also noted that he would have no problem telling QB Aaron Rodgers that the team is moving on from him in 2023.

“If we were? Sure, absolutely,” Gutekunst said, via Rob Demovksy of ESPN. “You’ve got to be honest with him, you know what I mean? I think he deserves that if we get to that point. We’re not at that point.”

Rodgers isn’t ready to say whether or not he will be back next season, regardless of whether or not it is with the Packers.

“I got to see what it feels like once I get away from this,” Rodgers after losing to the Lions.

“We made a really big commitment to him last offseason, so I think as we did that it wasn’t certainly for just this year,” Gutekunst said after the loss. “He’s going to take his time, and the communication will be pretty constant as we move forward.”

Jordan Love

Gutekunst was then asked if Rodgers or QB Jordan Love would give the team a better chance to win next season.

“Well, I mean, you’re talking about a four-time MVP, right?” Guteskunst responded. “We are very excited about Jordan and where he’s at, there’s no doubt about that. But Jordan’s never played a 16-, 17-game season and gone through all that stuff. So, it’s no different than when we moved from Brett to Aaron, right? That’s a hard thing to say, but at the same time, where Aaron’s at, the level he’s at, there’s not many teams he wouldn’t give the best chance to win.”