David Montgomery, Jahmyr Gibbs highlight Lions’ Super Bowl goal amid standout 2024 campaign

In the span of a month and a half during the 2023 offseason, the Detroit Lions signed four-year veteran running back David Montgomery, and selected running back Jahmyr Gibbs with the 12th overall pick in the NFL Draft, doubling down on a strength at a position that the rest of the NFL had deemed something close to obsolete. However, Lions head coach Dan Campbell and general manager Brad Holmes must’ve known something the rest of us didn’t.

Since this tandem — which has gone on to become known as Sonic and Knuckles — was put together, the Lions have won 22 of 28 regular season games and are ranked among the league’s best offenses. And while quarterback Jared Goff, wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, and offensive coordinator Ben Johnson deserve plenty of credit here too, to become the sort of smash mouth football team that Campbell embodies as Detroit’s head coach, the Lions needed a duo of backs that could dominate.

It turns out that this is exactly what David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs have done since coming together. And even as they continue to rack up unique NFL records — like becoming the first running back duo in NFL history to each score 10 rushing touchdowns in consecutive seasons — their sights remain set on bringing a Lombardi Trophy to the Motor City for the first time.

“It’s super dope to know that me and him are doing something real special and we just want to keep going and see where it ends up,” Montgomery said, according to Eric Woodyard of ESPN.com. “We’re trying to be in the history books and I’m saying in the Super Bowl … we’re trying to be in the history books, too, for what me and him can do together, so it’s special.”

Gibbs echoed what his teammate had to say.

“Mostly we want that Super Bowl first and if we get that, I think everything else will come with it.”

Detroit was 5th in rushing yards during the 2023 season, and they’re 4th in the same category this year. And digging into the stats, it’s easy to see that because Montgomery and Gibbs are splitting the work almost perfectly down the middle, the Lions can always rely on a fresh back to finish games.

Montgomery – 364 carries, 1,647 rushing yards, 24 rushing touchdowns, 40 receptions, 358 receiving yards

Gibbs – 336 carries, 1,831 rushing yards, 20 rushing touchdowns, 78 receptions, 581 receiving yards, 2 receiving touchdowns

Backfield bond may bring Lions to the mountaintop