Getty Image / Michael Owens
At this year’s NFL Draft, the Detroit Lions made a move that shocked many football fans.
Entering the draft, the popular belief was that the Lions would spend the 6th pick on a cornerback to continue improving a defense that had a strong finish to last season.
They ended up trading that pick and moving to 12, but one of the draft’s top corners was still on the board for them there.
Instead, they made Jahmyr Gibbs the 2nd running back off the board.
Heading into the first day of the draft, it didn’t even seem guaranteed that Gibbs would be selected in round 1.
Yesterday, Lions GM Brad Holmes discussed the decision to make that pick on “The Season with Peter Shrager” and compared Gibbs to Marshall Faulk and Christian McCaffrey.
Lions GM Brad Holmes | The Season with Peter Schrager – Full YouTube https://t.co/BAI9QaE9zY
— Peter Schrager (@PSchrags) July 12, 2023
“When I first got with the Rams in 2003, Marshall Faulk was still there, and I was a huge Marshall Faulk guy — just kind of seeing what he does in both phases ,” Holmes said. “And just from a scouting standpoint, when Christian McCaffrey came out, he was the last guy that I was like, ‘Holy cow, this guy can run routes like a slot receiver but also run it.’ So, you start getting reminders of those players. I’m not sitting here saying Jahmyr Gibbs is those players, but just a special weapon like that. We have a lot of excitement and optimism.”
Those are two pretty impressive players to be compared to. Marshall Faulk is a former Hall of Famer and won an MVP as a running back.
When healthy, McCaffrey has been the NFL’s most dynamic running back and was once again a nightmare for opposing defenses last season.
With the current state of the NFL’s running back market, Jahmyr Gibbs is going to need to be a truly special player for this pick to pay off.
It’s rare these days to see a running back taken in the top 15 and it is even rarer for the 2nd running back in a class to be taken that early when so many teams find starters in the later rounds.
Gibbs will have some big expectations right from the start, but it sounds like the Detroit Lions believe he can be a truly game-changing player for them.