{"id":281323,"date":"2026-04-29T12:40:47","date_gmt":"2026-04-29T16:40:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/?p=281323"},"modified":"2026-04-29T12:40:47","modified_gmt":"2026-04-29T16:40:47","slug":"is-jahmyr-gibbs-ready-for-a-backfield-of-his-own","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2026\/04\/29\/is-jahmyr-gibbs-ready-for-a-backfield-of-his-own\/","title":{"rendered":"Is Jahmyr Gibbs Ready for a Backfield of His Own?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Detroit Lions<\/a> are looking to improve on their disappointing 9-8 record. It was evident that they missed ex-offensive coordinator Ben Johnson.<\/a> But quarterback Jared Goff<\/a> still led the Lions offense to one of their best statistical years yet. But the team cut ties with running back David Montgomery,<\/a> which leads to the question. Is Jahmyr Gibbs ready for a backfield of his own?<\/span><\/p>\n

Is Jahmyr Gibbs Ready for a Backfield of His Own?<\/h2>\n

Jahmyr Gibbs’ 2025 Season Review<\/h3>\n

Gibbs cemented his status as a true number one running back in 2025<\/a>. While David Montgomery was still on the roster, the Lions shifted their workload to Gibbs. This led him to earn his third consecutive Pro Bowl.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

He rushed for 1,223 yards in 2025 to go along with 13 rushing touchdowns. His 5.0 yards per carry was ranked seventh in the league. He also proved to be a valuable receiver. He recorded 77 receptions for 616 yards and five touchdowns. But now he is completely by himself.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The ‘Lead Back’ Dynamic<\/h3>\n

Without Montgomery, Jahmyr Gibbs now goes from a change-of-pace weapon to the total all-purpose back. Montgomery typically handles the physical work. Without him, Gibbs has to prove he can take on 20-plus carries a game without his efficiency slipping.<\/span><\/p>\n

Opposing defenses do not have to worry about the \u2018thunder\u2019 element that he would bring. They can strategically play more packages that match his speed. This means that Gibbs will have to work harder to find open space. Three things have to be improved for Gibbs:<\/span><\/p>\n

3 Key Areas for Jahmyr Gibbs to Improve On<\/h2>\n

Short-Yardage and Goal Line Vision<\/h3>\n

David Montgomery is a master at finding the soft spots in piles to pick up two yards on third down. Gibbs sometimes relies on bouncing runs outside to use his speed. If he can improve his runs inside, this would allow the Detroit Lions to keep him on the field during goal-line situations. It would prevent the team from subbing in a physical back.<\/span><\/p>\n

Pass Protection Consistency<\/h3>\n

If Jahmyr Gibbs wants to be a three-down back, he has to be elite at pass protection. While he has improved, he still occasionally struggles against blitzing linebackers. This is because he is on the smaller side. Mastering techniques used by smaller blockers like Austin Ekeler<\/a> would make him a threat while blocking.<\/span><\/p>\n

Route Running Versatility<\/h3>\n

Jahmyr Gibbs is already an elite receiver. But he is often used on swing plays. To take the next step forward, he could expand his routes to include more advanced ones. These would include slants, options, or even slot routes.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If he can beat corners and safeties in man coverage, he becomes a mismatch and nightmare that forces defenses out of their base sets.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Reflection<\/h3>\n

<\/smartframe-embed><\/p>\n

Simply put, Jahmyr Gibbs is not David Montgomery. He does not need to be. Nor does he need to replace his running style. He needs to refine his ability to handle situational football. If he can become a reliable third-down and short runner and a lock-down pass protector, he has the potential to be even more dangerous than before.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Detroit Lions are looking to improve on their disappointing 9-8 record. It was evident that they missed ex-offensive coordinator Ben Johnson. But quarterback Jared Goff still led the Lions offense to one of their best statistical years yet. But the team cut ties with running back David Montgomery, which leads to the question. Is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5783,"featured_media":281356,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":true,"sfio_embed_code":"<\/smartframe-embed>","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6431,24],"tags":[4828,7467,9757],"class_list":["post-281323","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nfl-teams","category-lions","tag-david-montgomery","tag-detroit-lions-news","tag-jahmyr-gibbs"],"modified_by":"Mike Roberts","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/281323","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5783"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=281323"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/281323\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":281357,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/281323\/revisions\/281357"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/281356"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=281323"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=281323"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=281323"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}