DETROIT (AP) – The Detroit Lions have a bye this week.
That might be the only thing that can slow Jahmyr Gibbs.
The lightning-quick running back is coming off the best game of his three-year career, accounting for 218 yards and two touchdowns in Detroit’s 24-9 win over the NFC South-leading Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday night.
Gibbs became the first player in franchise history and 10th in the NFL to have at least 135 yards rushing, 80 yards receiving and two rushing scores in one game.
“If you give him a crease, he´s going to make you pay – and he made us pay,” Tampa Bay coach Todd Bowles said.
Gibbs ranks fifth in the NFL with 720 yards from scrimmage and second with 526 yards rushing, and is third in the league with six touchdowns on the ground.
“There will be no looking back,” Lions coach Dan Campbell said. “He´s going to just continue doing this.”
The Lions (5-2) and opponents trying to defend Gibbs get a break this week until their next game on Nov. 2 at home against Minnesota.
Gibbs had a career-best 78-yard touchdown run against the Bucs, reaching 22.23 mph for the second-fastest run this year that trails another one of his sprints this season.
“Those really long ones are fun to watch and I feel like I got the best seat in the house, just to, like, see him hit the hole and then just, like, take off,” quarterback Jared Goff said. “I don´t know how many safeties in the league could catch him. So as soon as he gets there, it´s over.”
“He´s dang fast and it´s fun to watch.”
The Lions’ reshaped line, which includes a pair of first-year starters and a position change, created a hole so large on the long run that Gibbs was not touched.
“In the first 12 yards, I knew it was a touch(down),” he said. “All I saw was black jerseys and I just ran straight.”
Gibbs can also stop on a dime as he did after making a catch in the flat, leaving two Bucs grasping at air.
“That´s just me watching YouTube,” he said when asked about the move.
The Vikings and the rest of the teams on Detroit’s schedule will watch a lot of film, trying to figure out how to contain the dual-threat, two-time Pro Bowl player.
In the Lions’ losses, Green Bay and Kansas City had the schemes and personnel to pull it off.
Gibbs was limited to 50 yards from scrimmage in the season-opening loss to the Packers and he accounted for 65 yards against the Chiefs earlier this month.
Like the Lions have done for nearly three years, they avoided two straight losses in the regular season and Gibbs led the way against Tampa Bay.
“We hate losing,” he said after the game, wearing a Pistons jersey and a Tigers cap. “We´re always going to find a way to bounce back and get to our standards.”
Detroit will resume its quest for its first Super Bowl appearance after the bye. The Lions will play Minnesota at Ford Field and will also host the New York Giants, Green Bay, Dallas and Pittsburgh with road games remaining against Washington, Philadelphia, the Los Angeles Rams, the Vikings and Chicago.
“You know what´s on the horizon,” Campbell said. “It´s a little clear the mind and let the body heal a little bit and get right for the last push. The big push will be here. We get the divisional opponents, 10 (games) until the playoffs and then it´s on.
“It feels good to get to 5-2. I´m pleased with the team.”
Campbell was particularly happy with how his short-handed defense performed against the Bucs.
Detroit had three starters in the secondary out with injuries and a fourth, Brian Branch, suspended by the NFL for one game after throwing a punch and triggering a postgame melee at Kansas City. The team also has four defensive backs on injured reserve.
Despite a depleted defense, the Lions allowed a season-low nine points, broke up 12 passes, had four sacks, one interception and recovered a fumble.
“You are going to see players start to come back over the next month, so that is encouraging,” Campbell said. “While we are only getting better and better, we are going to start getting some of our players back, too.”
