Montgomery could see an increased workload against the Steelers with Rhamondre Stevenson (ankle) officially ruled out for Week 14. This season, Montgomery has turned three carries into nine yards while appearing in all 12 of the team's contests to this point and he'll be operating behind Ezekiel Elliott in the backfield, so his fantasy value will remain limited.
With Rhamondre Stevenson exiting Sunday's game early with an ankle injury that's expected to keep him sidelined for multiple weeks, Montgomery resurfaced in the Patriots' backfield mix. He still lagged far behind Ezekiel Elliott in terms of both snaps and touches, but Montgomery at least had the opportunity to pick up his first carry since Week 5. The Patriots have kept Montgomery active for all 12 of their games to date mostly for his contributions on special teams, but he could end up settling in as the primary change-of-pace option behind Elliott while Stevenson is sidelined.
Montgomery practiced in full Thursday after missing Wednesday's session entirely, signaling he probably won't miss any game action due to the illness he's dealing with. As long as Rhamondre Stevenson and Ezekiel Elliott (thigh) are available in Week 13, Montgomery isn't likely to check in for more than a couple snaps versus the Chargers.
Montgomery is dealing with an illness to open the week and he was unable to go for New England's first practice session ahead of Sunday's matchup with the Chargers. The 30-year-old will have two more sessions to return to the field before the final injury report Friday.
The 30-year-old running back out of Stanford was absent from Thursday's practice after he tallied a limited session Wednesday. It's unclear when Montgomery suffered this knee injury, but he'll likely carry an injury designation into the weekend after Thursday's DNP.