‘A special, special situation’: Why RB Jahmyr Gibbs’ three-headed skill set has the Lions eager for Year 2

ALLEN PARK, Mich. — Scottie Montgomery leaned back and replayed the October 2023 play in his head.

The Detroit Lions running backs coach didn’t know it then. But three hours earlier, Montgomery’s pupil, Jahmyr Gibbs, had conjured the same play when considering which of his 234 rookie touches most reflected his NFL potential.

The Lions were up just 2 points against the Las Vegas Raiders on Monday Night Football when Jared Goff handed the ball to Gibbs, who began his pursuit more than 6 yards behind his quarterback.

Gibbs clutched the ball and raced up the middle of the Raiders defensive line. Yes, up the middle. He didn’t cut right nor left as he decisively worked toward the end zone. Only after bursting through defender after defender did Gibbs angle right toward an open field.

He outpaced the opposing safety and scored standing up, before jubilantly leaping into the stands.

Montgomery marveled from the sideline.

Did a rookie just hit the tight zone like that?

“It was a tight interior cut,” Montgomery told Yahoo Sports on Friday after Lions meetings wrapped. “Most young backs bounce, but he decided not to bounce and he skinnied through. As soon as he skinnied through, he burst down the right side and scored.

“That was one of the situations for us like, ‘OK — this is gonna be a special, special situation.’”

Gibbs’ rookie year was indeed special. Forget the flak the Lions took for drafting a running back in the first round — the 2023 12th overall selection needed an opportunity but little time to demonstrate his every-down potential.

Entering his second pro year on a roster that seems prime for something big, Gibbs isn’t just riding that wave of debut success. Instead, he’s working and learning and asking everyone around him how he can get better.

So the Lions expect he will.

“[It’s] coming together way faster than last year,” Gibbs told Yahoo Sports. “More comfortable. I know the offense.”

From Jared Goff to Amon-Ra St. Brown, Gibbs collecting teachers

When Lions receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown nears, the questions begin.

What are you looking at? What visual cues are you getting? How do you expect the hook defender to react and how about the outside flat defender? How can I prevent the flat defender from squeezing me?

Gibbs wants to know every answer.

He rushed for 2,132 yards and 15 touchdowns in three years across Georgia Tech and Alabama, catching another 104 passes for 1,217 yards and eight touchdowns. But NFL coverages trend more complex and with more disguises. So for a young running back to dominate the passing game, he’s wise to ask questions.

Gibbs does early and often.

He asks his quarterback when to be precise on routes and when creative; linemen weigh in on how he can best assist in pass protection, center Frank Ragnow touting Gibbs’ third-down blitz pickups.

Coaches saw how many defensive looks Gibbs received during the first two months of his NFL career. As the newness faded, Gibbs’ snap counts ticked up from 12 to 38 the first four weeks of the season to more than 50 in weeks 7 and 8.

“We were really impressed with his ability to transition from the classroom to the field,” Montgomery said. “That sometimes can slow a player down; with him, it did not.”

As Gibbs settled into the fabric of offensive coordinator Ben Johnson’s intricate offense, his vision and acceleration improved and his yards per carry rose.

Gibbs’ 5.2 yards per carry ranked third among running backs, behind only the San Francisco 49ers’ Christian McCaffrey (5.4) and Pittsburgh Steelers’ Jaylen Warren (5.3).

Only fellow running back David Montgomery scored more touchdowns (13) than Gibbs’ 11 from scrimmage as four Lions skill players hit double digits.

Gibbs’ 1,261 yards from scrimmage invalidated the legitimacy of draft critics, his potential clear long before coaches believed he reached his ceiling.

The Lions found an asset in Gibbs — and Gibbs, a glove-like fit in the Lions.

“We’re a run-first offense sprinkled with play action and dropback [passing],” Gibbs said. “[Offensive coordinator Ben Johnson] really hangs his hat on running the ball first so he wants us to develop that. Because without the running game, [in the] passing game you could back everybody up.

“He just knows how to scheme it up. It’s crazy. He knows how to get everybody involved and he makes it successful.”

What will Gibbs mean as Lions chase brightest lights?

The Lions’ offense fields so many weapons it can be easy to overlook Gibbs’ contribution to its success.

After all, he joined a roster with the league’s top offensive line, per Pro Football Focus, and a quarterback who threw for 4,575 yards (second) and 30 touchdowns (fourth) last year, his 97.7 passer rating slotting ninth best in the league.

Undoubtedly, the Lions breed success from a diverse set of players whom Johnson thrives at scheming in a manner intentionally designed to confuse defenses.

How many different plays can the Lions run out of the same formation? How many different motions can precede the same play?

Detroit aims to outwit and outplay as the franchise outlasts.

But there are games, like the Lions’ Monday night game last season, when Goff is playing just fine — he’d finish with 272 yards, a touchdown and an interception — and St. Brown’s 108 yards are punishing but set up more field goals than touchdowns.

Gibbs had returned from a hamstring injury weeks earlier and was ready to punish Las Vegas in the air and by ground, with what would ultimately amount to 189 yards on 31 touches.

But his late third-quarter run wasn’t just the mark of a game-high 27-yard play nor was it “just” the touchdown that extended the Lions’ lead to multiple scores.

It was also a jolt of energy for the Lions as they saw the unbridled energy with which Gibbs raced forward.

Montgomery saw more than just a play — he saw a pro-caliber trait unlocked from a player not long removed from college.

He’d see it again as Gibbs halted a Vikings backside linebacker from blowing up a play and still later, in the playoffs, on a well-timed block against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Expect Gibbs’ combination of headstrong running, a growing receiving repertoire and an increasingly reliable pass-blocking resumé to earn him even more snaps in his second Detroit year than his first.

Expect him to be a key cog in a Detroit franchise eager to show that last year’s NFC championship berth wasn’t an accident. It was a sign.

The Lions saw each of the skills they wanted Gibbs to contribute during his rookie season. Now, they’re aiming to harness it with more consistency and difficulty.

“When they start reading the first level [of the defense] and filling the second level, which turns into explosives, it’s time,” Montgomery said of a running back’s ability to diagnose not just defensive linemen but also linebackers. “You take a lot of pride in looking at the development from a mental error standpoint. Once the mental errors are reduced to none or hardly none, you feel comfortable with him playing.”