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Eric Woodyard, ESPN
DETROIT — After a long day, Lions right tackle Penei Sewell returned home to a pleasant surprise.
His 2-year-old son, Malakai, was pretending to be Sonic the Hedgehog, but not the video game character. He was imitating Sewell’s Lions teammate, running back Jahmyr Gibbs.
“I bought my son a Sonic plush because he loves Jah,” Sewell said. “One day, I come home and he’s running around with the toy and he’s like, ‘Dad, Uncle Jah.'”
Sewell’s little boy isn’t the only one who has noticed.
Nicknamed after ’90s video game characters, Gibbs, 22, also known as “Sonic” for his speed, and his backfield partner David Montgomery, 27, nicknamed “Knuckles” for his strength, have made a name for themselves as part of coach Dan Campbell’s “two-headed monster” backfield. Over the past two seasons, they have combined for 4,417 yards from scrimmage..
In Gibbs and Montgomery, the Lions have two players who could be running backs for almost any NFL team. But they say they have no problem splitting the carries and have put aside their egos and personal accolades in hopes of helping the Lions win the franchise’s first Super Bowl, a quest that continues Thursday against the former Lions team. Montgomery, Chicago Bears (12:30 p.m. ET). , CBS).
They say they are not sure how their new nicknames were created. They just know that once the nicknames caught their attention online, they accepted them, even though the names are not perfect descriptions of the players’ on-field styles.
“I would say it’s pretty accurate, but I would say we could switch roles in some ways, depending on the situations,” Gibbs said.
Sunday’s 24-6 victory over the Indianapolis Colts was the latest example of their productive partnership. Gibbs and Montgomery found the end zone a combined three times (two for Gibbs, one for Montgomery) and reached a number of milestones in the process.
The performance marked the 11th time the duo scored a touchdown in the same game (including the playoffs), which is the most such games for a running back duo in NFL history, according to ESPN Research. And with Gibbs’ second score of the day, a 5-yard sprint late in the third quarter, he and Montgomery became the first duo in NFL history to each score 10 rushing touchdowns in consecutive seasons.
“It’s great to know that he and I are doing something really special and we just want to keep going and see where it ends up,” Montgomery said. “We’re trying to be in the history books, and I mean the Super Bowl… we’re also trying to be in the history books, for what he and I can do together, so it’s special.”
Gibbs agreed.
“That’s what we’re trying to do,” Gibbs said. “But most of all we want that Super Bowl first and if we get it, I think everything else will come with it.”
SONIC AND KNUCKLES joined forces in spring 2023 and said there was an instant connection.
That March, Montgomery, the Bears’ former third-round pick in 2019, joined the Lions on a three-year, $18 million contract. A month later, the Lions selected Gibbs, a playmaker from Alabama, with the 12th pick before trading running back D’Andre Swift to his hometown Philadelphia Eagles.
“From the first time I got here. The first time we started talking. I realized he was different,” Gibbs said of Montgomery. “He wanted the best for me and I wanted the best for him. Since then, we’ve been locked down.
“I don’t think it was a specific moment. We are like that naturally and made for each other.”
The two like to engage in friendly competitions to push each other week after week. After Sunday’s win, Montgomery was aware that Gibbs (90 rushing yards on 21 carries against Indy) had walked away with a team-high 886 rushing yards on 154 carries compared to his 632 yards on 145 carries.
“I have to go get it,” Montgomery joked.
They also encourage each other. The duo combined for three first-half rushing touchdowns in a 42-29 win Monday night over the Seattle Seahawks in Week 4. While dressing after the game, Gibbs said without hesitation that they were the best running back duo of the league and that it is not “close”. at all,” even though Montgomery started all four games up to that point.
“We can both do everything, so it’s hard for defenses to plan against us,” Gibbs told ESPN. “I mean the production also speaks for itself.”
Campbell compared their relationship to that of brothers and said it has pushed each player to improve.
“David and Gibbs are like brothers…David’s big brother and he’s not going to let anyone mess with him, that’s his man,” Campbell said. “Now he’ll pick on him, and if he does something wrong he’ll let him know, but he takes him under his wing and I think they’ve lifted each other up and he’s made Gibbs better and I think it’s helped him.” also.”
As for Gibbs and Montgomery, they say they clicked because they share the same goal.
“We both want to win and we’re both selfless humans. Jah is really selfless and humble and I like to see myself the same way,” Montgomery told ESPN. “He’s special, brother. He’s elite and I think he’ll be remembered as one of the best to ever do it.”
CAMPBELL HAS ALWAYS He envisioned having what he calls a “two-headed monster” in the backfield.
Before becoming Detroit’s head coach in 2021, the former NFL tight end witnessed running back duo Ron Dayne (781 yards from scrimmage) and Tiki Barber (1,725 yards from scrimmage) ), known as “Thunder and Lightning”, helped their 2000 New York Giants team to a Super Bowl appearance against the Baltimore Ravens.
As an assistant tight ends coach with the New Orleans Saints in 2017, he also saw how coach Sean Payton used running backs Mark Ingram (1,540 yards from scrimmage) and rookie Alvin Kamara (1,554 yards from scrimmage). , making them the first runners in the race. backs to make the Pro Bowl from the same team in at least four decades.
He kept those examples in mind for Gibbs and Montgomery as he formed the duo.
“To me, they’re the perfect combination,” Campbell said. “In my opinion, there is nothing better. You have everything you need from those two players, whether it’s running or passing.”
Sunday’s game marked Montgomery’s 25th with the Lions. In that span he scored 24 rushing touchdowns, tied for sixth most in NFL history by a player in his first 25 games with a team. Detroit is also 9-0 in games in which both Gibbs and Montgomery run for scores.
“When you have a common goal and you have a chance to win, one of the things you have to do is do your best at all times,” Lions assistant manager and RB coach Scottie Montgomery said. “And one of the ways we can keep them at their best is to break down some of the things they do.”
But being part of a backfield duo isn’t always easy. Ingram said there are pros and cons to splitting carries with another elite running back. Among the advantages: professional longevity and fresher legs in the final stretch. Among the disadvantages: sacrificing personal accolades, such as rushed titles and statistics.
“You have to be prepared to maximize your opportunities because you don’t know how many touches you’re going to get or when they’re going to come. You have to stay locked in and loose on the bench and active in games even if you’re not.” Not getting consistent touches, which can be a challenge and take some getting used to,” Ingram said. “Also, when you’re the RB1 and you play back, you know you wake up on game day and you’re going to be there with the opportunity to flow, get into rhythm.
“But when you rotate in and out based on personnel packages, not only is it a challenge to get a flow and a rhythm, but it also gives defenses a clue about tendencies when one player is in the game against another, so that the coaching staff must -explore so as not to reveal trends in how each back is used.
Former NFL running back TJ Duckett formed a successful tandem with Warrick Dunn as Atlanta Falcons teammates from 2002 to 2005, where they combined for 6,296 rushing yards and 53 regular-season touchdowns in their time together. Each accepted their role: Duckett thrived in close-range situations, while Dunn was a playmaker. But Duckett says successful partnerships are “very rare” in the NFL.
“At the end of the day, you’re taking food off people’s tables,” Duckett said. “The thing about Warrick was that he was trying to make me better even though it might have jeopardized his spot… It worked that way, but I was in other rooms and the dynamic was completely different.”
In Detroit, Gibbs and David Montgomery say they are committed to keeping something good going.
And for those who doubt and feel their partnership won’t last, Gibbs issued a warning.
“If they think we’re ever going to turn on each other or be against each other, it’s not going to work,” Gibbs said. “They won’t understand us, so let them know that now, so don’t try.”
