Goodbye to David Montgomery & Graham Glasgow
Information gathered from: The Houston Chronicle, NBC Sports, OverTheCap, and Detroit Lions Podcast
Today a couple pieces of bitter sweet news dropped for the Detroit Lions. On again, off again center/guard Graham Glasgow was cut in a bid for cap relief, and David Montgomery was traded to the Houston Texans for a 4th round pick, a 7th round pick, and center/guard Henry Scruggs. Below I will break down the financials and everything that I know to be fact or have ascertained based on available information.
However, before I get into that, I want to say one thing that applies to both players. I think we can all agree that both Graham Glasgow and David Montgomery were certainly “Detroit Style” players. They fought through injury, played hard, and never took a snap off. We often treat these gentlemen as “just players”, but they are people who fought hard for our entertainment and city of Detroit. I wish both of them the best in their future and hope they find success wherever they go.
Now that we are done with that, let’s get into each transaction and see how the Lions did.
Per the NBC Sports article and additional information from The Houston Chronicle, the Lions traded David Montgomery to the Houston Texans for a Pick 106 (4th round) in the 2026 NFL Draft, an unspecified 7th round pick in the 2027 NFL Draft, and center/guard Juice Scruggs. The departure of Montgomery clears up 5.5 million in cap space, and the addition of Scruggs adds 1.5 million in cap space clearing up an estimated 4 million dollars in cap space for a strapped Lions team. While I did not want to see Montgomery go, the facts lay out a pretty plain story. Early in the offseason Brad Holmes mentioned Montgomery’s discontentment with his usage. Both Dan Campbell and Brad Holmes once again addressed this at the combine. Add on the fact that Montgomery was the 12th highest paid RB in the NFL (per Jeff and Chris of Detroit Lions Podcast), that he was unlikely to take a pay cut, and that he was and RB2 getting paid so much, the story simply tells itself.
The compensation, however, is fair in my personal opinion. A 4th round pick is good for someone who is highly paid, and encroaching very quickly on age 30. Add in a 7th round for next year and that is icing on the cake. We all have seen the fall off in running backs beyond 30 years of age. While it may not be fun to say goodbye to him, it’s likely the right move. It adds draft capital, cap space, and a young player at a position of need. Scruggs did not grade out very well last year at guard, but from my limited reading it sounds as though he has previously played a lot of center and fared well there. Add on his age of 26 years old, and low cap hit. He is good additional competition for the now open center position with potential upside. This likely means someone like Trystan Colon will not be returning to the Lions.
Finally, as I mentioned I could see happening in my OC breakdown article earlier this week, Graham Glasgow was released with a cap savings of 5.5 million dollars. Graham had an up and down 2025. He is 33, which isn’t always the worst thing for offensive linemen, but with his cap hit and the money to be saved, and injuries considered, it was very likely. I expect the Lions will sign a center in free agency, and likely draft one later as well.
So, at the end of the day the Lions gain nearly 10 million dollars in cap space, add two draft picks (one in 26, one in 27), and gain a young, inexpensive, depth player who has decently high upside. While no one may be celebrating today in Allen Park, as two true Lions have departed, I don’t think anyone is going to lose any sleep over it either.