Detroit Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs said he expects to line up outside a lot more than his first two seasons.
This week at a youth camp, Detroit Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs opened up about a brand-new role on offense that the team has hinted about from the moment they drafted him in 2023. It sounds like Year 3 may finally be the year where the Lions expand upon his role in the backfield to getting some serious looks outside as a receiver.
“I gotta learn the formations for being split out,” Gibbs said. “I’m being split out like way more than I was the past two years. That’s good. That’s going to be fun. I’ve been waiting on that.”
Gibbs being used much more than a typical receiver is something that Lions general manager Brad Holmes envisioned since draft night. When criticized for drafting a running back so highly in the draft (12th overall), Holmes defended the decision by noting that they view him as a more versatile weapon.
“He’s a weapon. Obviously, he can do it all as a runner, but what he can do as a receiver and a lot of other things,” Holmes said. “So his versatility, what he’s going to bring to the offense, we’re really excited about (it).”
There was talk last year about expanding Gibbs’ role to being on the perimeter a lot more, with the Lions running back even starting to learn the difference between route running from the backield vs. out wide. However, most of those plans were set aside when Gibbs was dealing with an injury for much of training camp.
In 2024, Gibbs did see his receiving stats take a significant jump from his rookie season. After catching 52 balls for 316 yards in 2023, he followed it up with 52 catches for 517 yards last season. However, PFF credited him with lining up at receiver (both outside and in the slot, combined) just 83 times out of 690 total offensive snaps. That was actually down from his rookie numbers (100 out of 681 snaps).
So expect a new wrinkle to the Lions offense in 2025 under new offensive coordinator John Morton. Perhaps this could make Gibbs’ goal of 1,000 rushing yards and 1,000 receiving yards a much more realistic goal for 2025.