CHICAGO – The Detroit Lions already knew second-year running back Jahmyr Gibbs could handle the load with David Montgomery (knee) out for the foreseeable future.
But after Sunday's 34-17 win over the Bears, a game in which Gibbs carried the ball 23 times for 109 yards (4.7 average) with a touchdown and chipped in 45 more receiving yards, there's no doubt Gibbs can be a No. 1 back when needed.
It's been great for Gibbs, Montgomery and this offense that they've been able to share the load this year as they both bring so much to the table. But with Montgomery nursing a knee injury that will keep him out at least until the playoffs, Gibbs stepped in and Detroit's offense didn't miss a beat.
"We always knew," Lions quarterback Jared Goff said. "Obviously showed it today. I thought he ran great. I thought he saw it great. I thought he caught it out of the backfield great. He did a hell of a job."
Gibbs has now produced 100-or-more scrimmage yards in nine games this season, the most by a Lions running back since Barry Sanders (16) in 1997.
He's also topped 1,500 scrimmage yards and 15 touchdowns on the season to join Sanders (1990-91) and Billy Sims (1980-81) as the only running backs in team history to accomplish that feat.
FIRST START
Gibbs wasn't the only player asked to step into a bigger role because of injury Sunday.
Rookie Christian Mahogany made his first career start at left guard in place of the injured Graham Glasgow and played great. The best way to know an offensive lineman played well is to not notice him at all and that was the case with Mahogany until a late false start penalty that Goff actually took the blame for after the game.
"It was really fun," Mahogany told detroitlions.com after the game. "Enjoyed every aspect of it and can't wait to see the film and improve."
Mahogany missed all of training camp with an illness after the Lions used a sixth-round pick on him out of Boston College. He's quickly moved up the depth chart and said all the veterans upfront were a huge help to getting him ready this week.
Detroit rushed for 146 yards in the game and amassed 475 yards of total offense as Goff was sacked just once and hit just three times total.
TWO KEYS
Lions head coach Dan Campbell had two points of emphasis he told the team he wanted to see from them coming into Sunday.
"I wanted to see us play Detroit football," he said. "And I wanted to win."
Check and check.
Detroit got back to running the football after having two sub-standard rushing efforts the two games prior vs. Buffalo and Green Bay. They also got back to creating takeaways (two vs. Chicago), something they have done at a Top 10 clip in the NFL this year but had generated just one in their previous four games.
And they got back in the win column after losing for the first time in 91 days last week, which is huge coming down the stretch controlling their own destiny.
