In a brutal season of injury attrition, 5-foot-9 Jahmyr Gibbs stood head and shoulders above the NFL. The Lions’ running back scored four touchdowns to rout Minnesota, 31-9, and clinch homefield advantage and the NFC’s only first-round bye for Detroit. Gibbs wound up leading the NFL with 20 TDs.
Lions general manager Brad Holmes wasn’t surprised, considering his immediate reaction to drafting Gibbs in 2023. Neither was head coach Dan Campbell. And that’s why they hold their current jobs, and why those who made the comments in Tom Pelissero’s 2023 tweet do not.
“If you want something on a Monday,” said Kyle Brandt on Good Morning Football, “if you’re a miserable fan right now of your team, this season is over, look at the replies to that tweet.’ Misery and violence. Fire everyone. Worst draft pick ever. What are they doing? They have no plan. Nobody takes a running back in this day and age.’
“Well, Jahmyr Gibbs just had four touchdowns in what was called the biggest regular-season game of all-time, and he was the MVP of that game.”
Twenty months ago, Detroit traded down to pick up additional capital and still got Gibbs at 12th overall in the first round. On Sunday night, he racked up 139 yards on 23 carries with a career-best three rushing TDs. He also posted 31 yards on five catches with another score.
“He was special, and we needed him to be,” said quarterback Jared Goff.
Detroit (15-2) is the No. 1 seed in the conference for the first time in franchise history. The Lions get two weeks to prepare for a divisional-round Ford Field game against the NFC’s lowest-remaining seed. It could be a rematch with Minnesota.
For more information on the Lions and Vikings, visit the Detroit and Minnesota team pages at ProFootballPost.com.
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