Pair of Iowa State Cyclone Alums Could Headline RB Market in 2026

David Montgomery and Breece Hall have had their fair share of success in the NFL after tremendous careers at Iowa State.

The former Cyclones are both still relatively young (Montgomery 28, Hall 24) and might both be major players in the Running Back market this offseason.

Hall is on an expiring contract with the New York Jets, while Montgomery has been officially placed in the 'cut candidate' conversation in Detroit.

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While it's plausible that both could stay put in their respective locations, it isn't exactly likely.

ESPN.com has Montgomery listed as a player that could be in line for a change of scenery:

Detroit Lions

RB David Montgomery

It felt as if the Lions' "Sonic" and "Knuckles" backfield became more of the Sonic (aka Jahmyr Gibbs, 23) show as the 2025 season went along, although Knuckles (aka Montgomery) still played plenty of snaps. Montgomery dropped only from 41% of offensive snaps in 2024 to 37% of snaps in 2025, but he also dropped from 221 touches to 182. Montgomery will turn 29 in June, and the Lions might look to save some money on the cap by moving on from him this offseason. It also might be better for his career to take a lead-back role with a different team.

Breece also made the list for the Jets:

New York Jets

RB Breece Hall

Hall will be hitting free agency in a couple of weeks, and there's a sense that he wants to move to a more successful organization. (On the day of the Super Bowl, he posted on X, "Hope I get to experience football on this stage. ... I'll get there one day. I know it.")

He's still a very talented runner and receiver who posted his first season with 1,000 rushing yards in 2025 and also recorded 350 receiving yards. Hall can be an even bigger part of the receiving game with a different team, as evidenced by his 76 catches for 591 yards and four touchdowns in 2023. NFL Next Gen Stats listed him with 0.58 rushing yards over expected per carry last season.

According to Spotrac, Breece Hall's current market value is around 11 million dollars per year this offseason.

Hall has run for 3,398 yards in four seasons with the Jets and also has 1,642 receiving yards and a total of 27 scores. Montgomery over seven years with the Bears and Lions has 6,115 rushing yards, 1,890 receiving yards and 63 total touchdowns.

Montgomery was a 2-time All-American and All-Big 12 pick with the Cyclones in 2017 and 2018, while Hall picked up a pair of All-American and First Team Big 12 honors in 2020 and 2021. Hall was also a second-team honoree in 2019.

Sources: Pro Football Reference (Stats), Spotrac and ESPN.com