When the Detroit Lions were on the clock with the 6th overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, they made a surprising move to trade down. This gave them the 12th overall pick and the 34th overall pick that they used to select tight end Sam LaPorta. However, they surprised everyone by selecting running back Jahmyr Gibbs out of Alabama with the 12th overall pick.
Some called it careless, and others called it clueless. It’s only been one season, but the tune towards the Jahmyr Gibbs selection has changed. It’s changed so much that some would call them geniuses.
After 15 games played as a rookie, Gibbs compiled 945 rushing yards on 182 carries and this led to 10 rushing touchdowns. Additionally, Gibbs was able to record 52 receptions for 316 yards and a touchdown.
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It’s been evident that the Lions have wanted a split backfield under Dan Campbell and while they feed David Montgomery plenty of carries, that doesn’t change the way Gibbs can impact a game. Let’s dive into some film to review the rookie season from Gibbs and how impactful he really is for the Detroit Lions offense.
Now it’s extremely difficult to pick which plays to highlight from Gibbs’ first season in the NFL. That said, I picked 3 plays through my summer re-watch on his film to highlight for this article.
The first play I want to highlight is from week 16 against the Minnesota Vikings. For Detroit, they come out with their ’11’ personnel (one running back and one tight end), but they’re aligned with a condensed set on both sides of the formation.
Prior to the snap, Jared Goff sends Kalif Raymond on an exit motion to the left of the formation. Post-snap, Amon-Ra St. Brown runs underneath the line of scrimmage (LOS) and as you can see Vikings safety Harrison Smith is aligned in man coverage and goes into a full-out sprint in the same direction as St. Brown.
While this play looks like it could lead to a potential play-action pass with St. Brown spilling out to the flats, this play is a designed run. With a great combo block between Frank Ragnow and Graham Glasgow on the right side, there’s also a good kick out by Penei Sewell. As Gibbs gets the football, he follows his blockers and while he slightly hesitates, it looks like he has nowhere to go but that’s all by design.
Gibbs shows his ability to start and stop while being able to run through initial contact. The burst to get the edge and upfield gets put on display and all of this contributes to him scoring one of his two touchdowns from this game.
The next play I want to highlight is certainly a tip of the hat to the Lions offensive line. For starters, we all need to give kudos to Frank Ragnow for his ability to peel off his combo block and pick up the blitzing inside linebacker. As you can see, his body may be positioned full to the right but his head is inside and all eyes are on that linebacker.
Next, look at Penei Sewell going toe-to-toe with Joey Bosa on the right side. While Bosa gets turned around, this gives a slight opening for Gibbs and look at how explosive he is once he makes his way through the hole.
While this run is credited to excellent blocking, it’s also impressive to see Gibbs play with little hesitation on this run. As I mentioned, he puts his explosiveness and speed on display and it’s the type of play that helps set the tone.
This is one of those runs where the defense gets back to their huddle and each player has an internal conversation that they’ve got to buckle up or they’re in for a long day. Unfortunately for the Chargers, it was a long day as they gave up 200 rushing yards, 41 points and over 530 total yards.
Lastly, I want to look at how Gibbs can be a mismatch machine. For starters, if he gets a linebacker aligned over the top of him, there’s a good chance he’ll find a way to get open. He may only beat that linebacker by one step, but if he gets open, that’s all that matters.
Looking at the play above, the Lions come out with a trips right formation. Out of the backfield, you’ll see Gibbs run a speed out against the linebacker. With how shifty and explosive he can be, you’ll notice the linebacker get flat-footed and stop in preparation of Gibbs breaking the route off inside.
This gives Gibbs plenty of separation and Goff delivers a good ball to him for the first down. Even though he only averaged 2.43 yards per carry in this game, Gibbs did have 7 receptions for 39 yards in this game.
Final Thoughts
Overall, it was a strong rookie season for Jahmyr Gibbs, and it appears that he could take an even bigger step this season. While he does split backfield duties with David Montgomery, the play making ability from Gibbs is electric. That showed once he started to get settled into the Lions offense and into the NFL. From week 7 through week 17, he recorded 766 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns.
During the Lions playoff run, he scored in every single game and averaged 4.97 yards per carry. According to Player Profiler, Gibbs had a 8.2% breakaway run rate last season and that was second best in the NFL. Meanwhile, he evaded 56 tackles last season (3.7 per game) and that was ranked 13th in the NFL.
Whether you’re for or against taking a running back in the first round, one thing is for sure, Jahmyr Gibbs looks worthy of being selected there. He’s a difference maker with the football in his hands and it feels like he can score at any moment. Look for him to take more than just a step forward this season.