David Montgomery leaves Lions-Vikings games with knee injury

Detroit Lions running back David Montgomery left Sunday’s game against the Minnesota Vikings with a knee injury.

Montgomery suffered the injury in the first quarter. He was tackled on a third-down run as Minnesota held a 10-0 lead. Montgomery was slow to get up after the hit and needed help from two trainers as he limped off the field.

The Lions initially listed Montgomery as questionable to return with a knee injury. The precise nature of his injury was unclear.

Through five games, Montgomery had tallied 351 rushing yards and 94 receiving yards with six touchdowns. He’d scored a touchdown in each game this season prior Sunday’s game against the Vikings as part of one of football’s best running tandems alongside Jahmyr Gibbs. With Montgomery sidelined, Gibbs becomes the clear lead back for the Lions with Craig Reynolds as his backup.

The Lions are coming off a game in Week 6 in which Pro Bowl pass rusher Aidan Hutchinson suffered a season ending fractured tibia and fibula. Hutchinson, who tallied an NFL-best 7.5 sacks through five games, underwent season-ending surgery last week.

This story will be updated when more information is available.