Bijan Robinson Weighs in on Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs Contract, Healthy Competition

FLOWERY BRANCH, GA - Atlanta Falcons running back Bijan Robinson ended his brief hold-in on Tuesday after agreeing to a three-year contract extension worth up to $75 million. Robinson had been present at training camp, but not participating in any of the workouts.

That ended on Tuesday afternoon as he was back with his teammates in drills for the last two days of camp.

Robinson was taken with the No. 8 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, and the Detroit Lions followed suit, taking Jahmyr Gibbs at No. 12 overall. The two were linked before the pre-draft process and beyond.

Gibbs is in a similar situation to Robinson, an uber-productive third-year running back sitting out of practice while working on a contract extension. Robinson's got done; Gibbs' has not.

Robinson admitted this week that he and Gibbs had been in contact with one another and are acutely aware on a week-to-week basis how the other running back is doing.

"We have," Robinson answered when asked if he had been in touch with Gibbs since signing his new deal. "We talk a lot, because we're in the same conversation. The Bijan/Gibbs debate is actually cool to see. It actually helps us both out, because every single Sunday, or whatever day we play, we're always trying to compete against each other.

"To have a guy like that, I can compete with, in whatever game he's playing in and whatever game I'm playing in, we just know we have to give our best effort, so it's cool to experience that."

The two most productive players at running back from the 2023 class, Robinson has Gibbs beat on both rushing (3,910 to 3,580) and receiving yards (1,738 to 1,439), but Gibbs and the Lions' offense have found the end zone considerably more times. Gibbs has 49 total touchdowns to Robinson's 34.

Sure, Tyler Allgeier helped siphon off some of Robinson's red-zone touchdowns, but the Lions have averaged 8.7 more points per game since 2023.

They have been supportive of one another through the contract process.

"We just told each other, 'Hang in there. Everything's gonna get done; everything's gonna be alright.' It's cool to see him go through it too. I hope he gets the most out of what he deserves, because he deserves it. He deserves it all.

"It's definitely a cool feeling to see two offensive guys, offensive weapon guys, that got drafted in the same class, and now that we're going into our fourth year, we're talking about extensions.

"It's just a testament to what God blessed us with and who we are as people."

When news broke of Robinson's extension, Lions' head coach Dan Campbell admitted, "It won't hurt," when speaking on Gibbs' negotiations after Robinson had set the bar.

Gibbs and the Lions are still playing the waiting game, while Robinson is set to be the face of the Atlanta Falcons for years and frees up salary cap room for the Falcons in the near future.

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