Lions Proclaim Jahmyr Gibbs Is Now Bell Cow Running Back

Detroit Lions are hanging their hat on running back Jahmyr Gibbs.

Detroit Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs (0) practices a drill during OTAs at team's Allen Park Performance Center | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Detroit Lions are going to maximize the potential of running back Jahmyr Gibbs, especially with how the former first-round pick is going to be utilized this upcoming season and throughout his career in Motown.

Speaking before practice in the second week of organized team activities, head coach Dan Campbell was asked what the ideal workload looked like for Gibbs this upcoming NFL season.

"Gibbs is , I mean he is, he's going to be our bell cow now. He really became more of that last year, but we're going to hang our hat on him quite a bit. We're going to do a lot of things we feel like he does well. Now, I've mentioned this before. He can run everything that we've got. He can run every scheme that anybody's ever run. He's not just an outside runner. He is not just a space runner. He can create his own space in the middle. And some of his biggest runs have been gap scheme right down the pipe where he's had patience and found it and guys blocked it up well.

"So, we're going to ask a lot of him, just like we do (Amon-Ra St. Brown) Saint, we ask a lot of Saint, we're going to ask a lot of (Jameson Williams) Jamo, we're going to ask a lot of (Lions TE Sam) LaPorta. We're going to ask a lot of (Isiah) Pacheco," Campbell commented further. "We're going to ask, I mean, there's a ton of guys, I ask a lot of Penei) Sewell, but we expect him to have a big year for us. We're going to put a lot on his plate in the run and pass game.”

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New offensive coordinator Drew Petzing indicated there is not neccessarily a ceiling for what Gibbs can accomplish, given his skillset and the potential for Detroit's offensive line to meet expectations in 2026.

As Petzing explained, "I think it can change as we go. I think a lot of it's going to be dictated by what we're good at as a unit. Where are we the best, where are we the most effective? Who are we playing and how do we utilize his skillset to build on that? I mean, he does so many things at a high level that I don't think there's necessarily a ceiling or a cap on what that could look like.

"I think that's going to be dictated a lot by the people around them and how the pieces all fit together.”