Frustrations are starting to grow in Detroit as the Lions’ star running back, David Montgomery, could request a trade once the 2025 regular season is over. Montgomery is expected to make his trade request, which a source believes could become the case, as the running back made a cryptic post. After posting on his Instagram story of his jersey hanging on top of his locker, fueled speculation of what this meant. It didn’t take long for NFL fans to take notice and see his liked comments under another post.
“I love you, bro, but you should request a trade. The way they’re treating you and glazing Gibbs is atrocious. Look what happens when we don’t use you. We lose,” a fan said.
Montgomery has removed the like since it started going viral, but it all signals that the running back is unhappy.
Uh Oh: Lions star RB David Montgomery posted this picture on his Instagram story…
😬😬😬 pic.twitter.com/RQUSauCt3N
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) December 23, 2025
Lions Star David Montgomery Expected to Request Trade After Cryptic Post – Possible Trade Suitors Emerge
The Lions are no longer the team they once were two years ago. After letting Ben Johnson join the Chicago Bears, it’s been a complete disaster for this team, and it continues to crumble even though Jahmyr Gibbs continues to ball. While it takes more than one player to shift the blame, the Lions haven’t been the same since they’ve underutilized Montgomery. The Sonic-Knuckles duo is one of the best in the league, but the past two months have been grueling for the two to get anything moving on the ground.
As for Montgomery, the running back is still under contract for 2026, so it’s no wonder that he would request a trade. Detroit won’t be in the postseason for January, so they can discuss the future with or without Montgomery sooner rather than later.
Next Possible Teams
Kansas City Chiefs
With the Kansas City Chiefs’ 2025 season done early, the offense has a lot of woes to address this upcoming offseason. Isiah Pacheco and Kareem Hunt are scheduled to become free agents in March, which means the team is left with a massive void. While they can re-sign either one of them, it’s not expected of them, as it’s been rumored that the Chiefs could move on without Pacheco at least.
Rookie Brashard Smith is still adjusting to the league, and as long as they restructure the contract of Patrick Mahomes and Chris Jones, the Chiefs could pull off a trade for Montgomery.
Minnesota Vikings
Meanwhile, the Vikings have one of the best defenses, but they need work to stabilize the ground game led by Aaron Jones. After trading for Jordan Mason, the running back hasn’t done enough to be explosive. While Montgomery has been slowing down, he could use a reset in JJ McCarthy’s offense and fight for a starting role in Minnesota. Montgomery has similar abilities to Jones, but the two could serve as a 1-2 punch.
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys’ running back room is up for grabs this upcoming offseason. Javonte Williams had himself a resurgent campaign, but he did slow down in the last leg of the season. Miles Sanders suffered a season-ending injury earlier this year, but they need to do something about Jaydon Blue. He hasn’t done anything to prove that he’s the long-term starter. Even if Williams leaves for another deal elsewhere, Jerry Jones should be aggressive and trade for Montgomery to stabilize the run game and give Dak Prescott easier access to move the chains.