Finally, Jahmyr Gibbs was tired. It was on his penultimate touch of the day, a pitch to the outside that went for a loss of a yard, "and I came out immediately," Gibbs said with a laugh. He caught his breath for a snap and went right back in for his 29th carry and 34th touch, both career highs. On the subsequent play, Jared Goff hit Gibbs' co-star Amon-Ra St. Brown for the go-ahead touchdown in overtime.
Gibbs and St. Brown carried the Lions to a closer-than-it-should-have been victory over the Saints to kick off the season, with two touchdowns a piece. St. Brown was his typically reliable self. Gibbs was his typically dynamic self. Tight end Sam LaPorta, who was his typically dependable self in his first game since back surgery last November, sometimes marvels at Gibbs like a fan in the crowd.
"Once or twice a game, I'll get caught watching him and forget that I'm on the field with him," said LaPorta. "He's just an electric player."
St. Brown is occasionally in disbelief, too.
"He’s a beast. To have a guy like that, he doesn’t even get tired. I don’t know how he does it. He’s running the ball every play, catching it out of the backfield, I’m looking at him in the huddle and he’s not even breathing hard," said St. Brown. "I'm so lucky to play with him. We're lucky to have him on our team, and we're going to need him throughout the year."
Amon-Ra St. Brown on Jahmyr Gibbs: "He’s a beast.
"He doesn’t even get tired. I don’t know how he does it. He’s running the ball every play, catching it out of the backfield, I’m looking at him in the huddle and he’s not even breathing hard." pic.twitter.com/pBHS8DxSXT
— 97.1 The Ticket: (@971theticketxyt) September 13, 2026
Therein lies the rub. It's early September. The Lions will need Gibbs at his best in December and ideally into January (and, dare we say it, February). 20 touches per game is one thing; that would already put Gibbs on pace for a career high 340. But 30-plus in Week 1, albeit in a game that went to overtime? Is this sustainable?
"I think. I mean, I have no idea," said Gibbs. "It doesn’t matter to me. I’m just trying to help my team win, whatever that looks like. ... Do I think there's a number (that's too many in a game)? Nah. I feel fine. I could've took 40 today."
St. Brown is right, said Gibbs. He rarely, if ever, comes to the huddle huffing and puffing. He smiled and said he's "built for it." He thrived in a lead-back role for the Lions at the end of 2024 when David Montgomery was injured, and looked no worse for the wear throughout last season when Montgomery was relegated to backup duties, which is precisely why Montgomery is gone.
Dan Campbell and the Lions are embracing Gibbs as their bellcow. This was the choice they made in the offseason when they could have either altered their plans on offense to compel Montgomery to stay or acquired a healthier back to replace him and help Gibbs carry the load. Now, with veteran Isiah Pacheco sidelined with a back injury and the rest of the backfield extremely short on experience, it's the only choice they have.
The Lions loved the way it looked on Sunday when Gibbs totaled 186 yards in a 31-30 win, after they saw a 21-0 third-quarter lead go up in smoke. But do they like the idea of Gibbs getting this much work over the course of the season?
Campbell smiled and said, "You know what I like? Winning a game, man. And we were going to win this game. That guy’s our hot hand."
"Ultimately, do I want to set records with how many carries? No, that’s not something I want to do," said Campbell. "But when you look at a guy and you feel like, alright, man, he’s in phenomenal shape -- he’s in the best shape I’ve seen since he’s been here. That doesn’t mean we’re not going to monitor (the work) and keep an eye on this guy because we understand that, too. But we did what we had to do today."
For reference, Christian McCaffrey led the NFL in touches last season with 413. Gibbs was seventh with 320. Jonathan Taylor led the league in carries with 323. Gibbs was 11th with 243. The Lions shouldn't have to lean on Gibbs as much as they did Sunday, with so many other weapons on offense. But on a day where Jameson Williams' hands betrayed him and Isaac TeSlaa was invisible in the passing game, the armory wasn't as deep as it appears. Sione Vaki took just two carries.
Campbell called it "a very promising Week 1" for Gibbs and the offense, which did churn out 165 yards on the ground and five yards per carry. "And certainly we know what Gibbs is, what he’s capable of, and he’s still not there yet — and I mean that in a good way. I’m telling you, we were this close to breaking three or four more of these, I mean breaking 'em wide open, a shoestring away, or just a little longer block in the second level."
"We’re going to get that cleaned up and he’s going to get better," Campbell said. "Week 1, yeah, I like where he’s at. I’m glad he’s here."
As for where he's headed, we'll see. Gibbs could be looking at 400 touches this year, a mark hit just once in the last six seasons. He says he's built for it. The question might be whether the Lions are built to avoid it.
