Bijan Robinson and Jahmyr Gibbs were rare exceptions when they were drafted in the first round this past April. And for that reason, they will be connected for as long as they play in the NFL.
NFL teams typically shy away from using a first-round pick on a running back because they tend to get hurt and because teams can find more value picking a running back later in the draft.
Yet Bijan Robinson (Atlanta Falcons) and Jahmyr Gibbs (Detroit Lions) were drafted at No. 8 and No. 12, respectively, becoming the first running backs to be taken higher than 24th since the New York Giants drafted Saquon Barkley at No. 2 in 2018.
Robinson, out of Texas, was viewed as a can’t-miss player, the best running back prospect since Barkley, and an early favorite for NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, given the offensive workload the Falcons were expected to hand him right away.
Meanwhile, Gibbs, out of Alabama, wasn’t as highly regarded as Robinson, but still considered a viable No. 1 running back option from the start. The Lions thought so highly of Gibbs that they traded D’Andre Swift to the Philadelphia Eagles two days after drafting Gibbs.
Jahmyr Gibbs coming on strong
Jahmyr Gibbs has yet to become the No. 1 running back for the Detroit Lions. He occupies the No. 2 spot behind David Montgomery, who is the NFL’s seventh-leading rusher with 855 yards and still gets the bulk of the carries.
Yet Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson has found ways to inject Gibbs into the offense, and the rookie hasn’t disappointed.
Last week against the Denver Broncos, Gibbs even brought back memories of Marshawn Lynch with a “beast mode” style run.
Gibbs had his second 100-yard game of the season and a pair of touchdowns in the Lions’ 42-17 thumping. Over the past three weeks, he’s averaging 7.5 yards per carry and turning his heads with his open-field running and his ability to break tackles.
Gibbs’ stat line (rushing): 139 carries, 792 yards, 5.7 yards per carry, 7 TDs
To further document his impact, Gibbs even leads all NFL running backs with 10 rushes of 20 yards or more.
Overall, Gibbs is averaging 5.7 yards per carry and 66 yards per game, he’s scored eight touchdowns (one receiving), and even better, he has yet to lose a fumble all season.
Bijan Robinson falls short of Jahmyr Gibbs
As for Bijan Robinson, he has accumulated more carries and rushing yards than Gibbs, but that’s about all.
Robinson’s stat line (rushing): 176 carries, 801 yards, 4.6 yards per carry, 4 TDs
While Robinson has gotten more playing time than Gibbs, he’s been used slightly less in the passing game, with six fewer receptions than Gibbs (47 to 41).
Although Robinson, like Gibbs, has a pair of 100-yard rushing games, Robinson hasn’t reached that mark since Week 4 against Jacksonville. Plus, he hasn’t even been his team’s leading rusher the past two weeks.
Against Carolina, Robinson rushed seven times for 11 yards and finished with only eight touches overall, while teammate Tyler Allgeier — a fifth-round pick in 2022 — had 14 carries for 45 yards.
An example of Robinson’s struggles came in the first quarter when the Falcons faced third-and-2 at the Carolina 33-yarrd line. They fed Robinson the ball on two straight plays, and he lost a yard on each one as the Falcons turned the ball over on downs.
He later lost a fumble, his third of the season, at the Falcons’ 20-yard line to set the Panthers up for their second field goal of the game in Atlanta’s 9-7 loss.
So, while Robinson has been de-emphasized and unproductive lately, Gibbs is beginning to flourish in the Lions’ offense. There’s no questions that Gibbs has been the better rookie running back in 2023 and, with three weeks to go, he should play his way more prominently into the NFL Rookie of the Year conversation.