Bears never worry about smooth, steady rookie running back David Montgomery

There’s something about running back David Montgomery that puts his Bears teammates and coaches at ease. They never worry about this guy.

He’s talented, no doubt, but also uncommonly mature for a 22-year-old rookie. Montgomery has walked and talked like a pro since arriving at Halas Hall in April. No one sees him as a wide-eyed kid.

And on the eve of his NFL debut, there’s a prevailing expectation in the locker room that he will react to it the same way he has everything else. He has been steadily improving the last few months and always seems level.

He said he’ll be serene enough to take a nap Thursday afternoon, even with a nationally televised game against the Packers that night, and that’s believable.

“All I’m thinking about is just knowing what I need to know and when I need to know it,” he said quietly as he packed up to go home after practice Tuesday. “I was pretty calm at Iowa State, too. It’s not really any different for me. I stay the same.

“That’s definitely my approach to a lot of things — not just football, but life in general. I’m the same way. I don’t show too much emotion.”

The Bears drafted Montgomery in the third round in April — their highest selection this year at No. 73 overall — after he tore it up in college with 2,815 total yards and 24 touchdowns over his sophomore and junior seasons. The thought was he could be a replacement and then some for Jordan Howard. They hope he’ll be their primary back, and his versatility as a pass catcher makes him an ideal player for coach Matt Nagy’s offense.

So far, his progression has exceeded their projections. And it’s not that Montgomery came in already knowing it all. What has consistently impressed the Bears is how he handles the things he doesn’t know. There’s a simplicity to it: He asks, they explain, he implements it. On to the next.

“You don’t see too many rookies in a big room . . . asking questions,” receiver Taylor Gabriel said. “They’re scared to ask questions. But if he has a question, he asks it. He’s really comprehending everything and trying to digest everything to get it right and stay on the field.”

Fans’ only glimpse of Montgomery was the limited work he got in the preseason opener against the Panthers. He had three carries for 16 yards, including a sharp cut for a seven-yard touchdown, and three catches for 30 yards.

Nagy wanted to keep him hidden the rest of the way to make him more difficult for the Packers to scout before the opener. But he also had passed every test the Bears put in front of him. They needed no additional proof that he was good to go.

“He’s in a good place right now,” Nagy said. “He hasn’t wavered at all with the offense. He’s taken it in. He’s done everything that we have asked him to do.”

The next challenge is to maintain his trajectory once the games matter.

His family will be watching — some traveling to be in the stands, some watching on NBC — and so will everyone else. Soldier Field will be packed with 60,000-plus fans who have waited eight months for the Bears to open a new season, and Montgomery’s 50 or so teammates on the sideline will be even more demanding.

Can Montgomery handle all that and still be the same guy he has been on the secluded practice fields in Lake Forest? It’s new territory for him, but he seems solid.

“He looks good, man,” Gabriel said. “It’s going to be cool to see him run out on the field and see all the fireworks and people in the stands. I just want to check his face out and make sure he’s not nervous.

“But I don’t think he’ll be nervous.”