When Ty Montgomery signed with the Jets in April, he said head coach Adam Gase's reputation as an offensive mind drove him to his new destination. After roughly two months with the team, Montgomery is enjoying his role in his new offense.
"You have to be smart," he said of the running back position. "You have to be able to catch the ball and you have to be able to run the ball. You can't have an imbalance and be at running back in this offense. It's actually pretty cool, it's challenging. I think it suits my abilities and I'm loving it."
Following a bumpy 2018 season, the fifth-year player is excited for a fresh start and to let his play speak for itself while not looking too far down the road.
"I'm trying not to get ahead of myself, but I'm excited for what lies ahead," he said. "I love being on this team, I love the guys on the team. We have a lot of fun every day, talking a lot of noise. Real, real competitive atmosphere, so it's a lot of fun."
See the Top Black & White Photos from the Jets Offseason Practices
Throughout the spring, Montgomery received the most reps with the first team when Le'Veon Bell was training in Florida, and the veteran RB-WR impressed his coaching staff with both his versatility and football IQ.
"He comes in and works really hard," running backs coach Jim Bob Cooter said. "He's a pro, he knows his way around the NFL. He's a smart guy. He knows how to learn things and take them straight to the practice field and execute them. He's able to line up inside, outside, all over the field. He's been a good guy for me to have in the room to work with and for us to have as an offense."
Despite wearing many hats in the backfield, Montgomery is particularly focused on learning the protections in the new offense. The Stanford product is familiar with learning new schemes as this will be his third NFL offense, and he'll get where he needs to be brick-by-brick.
"I'm trying to win the day," he said. "It's something I learned in college — win the rep, win the down, win the practice, win the day. It's one thing at a time every day, enjoy each moment. That's just what I'm expecting from myself, just to enjoy each moment as long as I'm here and hopefully I can be here for a long time."
