Going into this season, with John Morton replacing Ben Johnson as the Detroit Lions' offensive coordinator, there was plenty of buzz about running back Jahmyr Gibbs seeing a larger share of the backfield workload. That has come to fruition.
However, as the Lions' offense was going through some early efficiency kinks under Morton, head coach Dan Campbell called for David Montgomery to see more touches alongside Gibbs.
"I would like to balance them [Gibbs and Montgomery] out," Campbell said. "I would like to give David some more [chances], find a place to get him a few more."
Morton called the offensive plays for two more games before Campbell took over the duties in Week 10 against the Washington Commanders. In seven total games since Campbell revealed how he wanted to get Montgomery more touches, Gibbs has 120 or more yards from scrimmage five times and more than 200 yards from scrimmage twice.
To be frank, it's impossible to take Gibbs off the field with how he's producing. In the four games since tight end Sam LaPorta was sidelined by a back injury, Gibbs has 26 receptions (on 31 targets) for 247 yards and a touchdown as he has already topped the 52 receptions he had in each of his first two seasons.
Dan Campbell acknowledges a good problem to have
Despite what Gibbs is doing, some Lions' fans may carry some angst about Montgomery's lack of work.
Campbell made his regular Tuesday appearance on 97.1 The Ticket's "Costa and Jansen with Heather." Co-host Jim Costa brought up how "we get calls" from fans who want to see more of Montgomery and his "physical style" to "soften up the defense".
Costa offered the obvious idea about the difficulty of doing anything to put a lid on Gibbs' workload, before presenting a question to the Lions' head coach.
"Do you want more Monty?", Costa said.
Campbell, to his credit, started his response with a touch of humor by asking for Costa's advice.
"Well you tell me, what do you want?"
Costa said "I want more Gibbs", to which Campbell continued to be coy by saying "we'll do want you want, who do you want out there?"
Costa remained steadfast about Gibbs, and prompted by Campbell the host proposed a 65-35 percent split between the two running backs (which is pretty close to the current dynamic, in terms of touches and snaps),
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Campbell then offered a more serious response, rooted in the Lions' offense being efficient and staying on the field to foster more plays and more touches for everyone. But he also acknowledged the zero-sum bottom line when it comes to the touch split between Gibbs and Montgomery.
"I love David Montgomery. I love Gibbs", Campbell said. "They're both valuable players for us. I wish I could give them both a heavy, heavy load."
Montgomery, typically fueled by appropriate game script when the team is leading, has a valuable place in the Lions' offense. But at this point his role has largely shifted to saving some wear and tear on Gibbs, with the aforementioned uptick in his usage as a pass catcher with LaPorta out.
And with that change in Gibbs' importance to the Lions' offense, not that it was really lacking previously, Campbell has softened his prior stance on getting Montgomery more touches.