Monangai also prides himself on two traits: pass protection and ball security.
“The quarterback is the most important person on the field from an offensive perspective, so protecting the quarterback comes first,” Monangai said. “You’ve gotta protect the quarterback if you want the ball, is kind of the philosophy I was raised on, so every chance I could get to protect my quarterback, make a proper block – it doesn’t always have to be a knockout, but I always have a level of intensity that I think is unmatched that I bring to that.”
When it comes to ball security, Monangai was one of the leaders in college football in that category, tallying 669 career carries without a fumble, a Rutgers record. He credits his coaching staff for emphasizing the importance of taking care of the ball as well as his extra work in that area.
“Protecting the football as an offensive player, anybody that carried the ball, it was the number one thing [at Rutgers],” Monangai said. “The way you see me carrying the ball throughout my whole college career, that’s something that was preached something that I worked hard on, grip strength with my hands and things of that nature. So ball security definitely means a lot and having zero career fumbles is something I definitely say with pride.”
Monangai intends to bring those and other traits to Chicago’s rushing attack and is eager about his opportunity to work with the Bears offense.
The running back met with the Bears once during the pre-draft process for an informal interview at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis, which he described as a positive experience. Monangai has also started to form a relationship with new running backs coach Eric Bieniemy.
“I just got off the phone with him not too long ago,” Monangai said. “We spoke briefly when we played recently when he was at UCLA, so [I] got to speak with him a little bit [today]. He said that he appreciated my game, and we just caught up on how it’s funny how the world works and now I get to play for him, so I’m excited.”
The rookie also expects to absorb teachings from veteran running back D’Andre Swift. Monangai remembers Swift as a rookie and described him a player who “does a lot of things very well.”
Along with the members of the running backs room, Monangai is most excited to work with head coach Ben Johnson. While he is still trying to wrap his head around all the talent he’s joining, he knows one thing…
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