Lions OC Ben Johnson says they’ll use rookie RB Jahmyr Gibbs in ‘some ways people don’t quite think we might’

Every yr there are a handful of NFL possibilities that garner the majority of the eye heading right into a given season. This yr, Lions operating again Jahmyr Gibbs is a type of skills that individuals are paying a large amount of consideration to, and for just right reason why. After all, Detroit took the Alabama again with the No. 12 total variety this previous spring, which was once one of the crucial extra unexpected choices of the outlet spherical. Now, it sort of feels just like the Lions will proceed to stay us guessing with Gibbs, particularly because it pertains to his utilization throughout the offense. 

Offensive coordinator Ben Johnson teased on Saturday that the Lions may just get ingenious with how they deploy Gibbs, announcing, “We might use Gibbs in some ways that people don’t quite think we might.” 

Of direction, Johnson’s remark does get the thoughts wandering on what particularly the group can have cooked up with their new again. While he’s going to for sure be used as a conventional runner out of the backfield, there was once already an assumption that Gibbs can be a featured piece as a receiver. 

Could this surprising utilization have him lining up extra as a slot receiver? Are they putting in some form of Wildcat bundle for him? We’ll proceed to wager till their blueprint for him in the end finds itself all the way through the season. It’s additionally no longer out of the query that there may well be some gamesmanship at the a part of Johnson, who may well be seeking to stay Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo’s head spinning as we inch nearer to the Week 1 opener on Thursday.  

Regardless of ways they use him, Gibbs, who has been making waves all the way through coaching camp, is predicted to be a high-volume asset for the Lions. This preseason, he logged six carries and rushed for 19 yards whilst catching his lone goal for 18 yards. The 21-year-old is coming off a 2022 season for the Crimson Tide the place he logged 1,370 yards from scrimmage, which integrated 44 receptions. 

Our CBSSports.com myth group initiatives Gibbs’ 2023 season with the Lions to seem like this: 683 dashing yards on 155 makes an attempt with 6 dashing touchdowns, at the side of 45 receptions for 426 yards and a couple of receiving TDs.