The Detroit Lions had far and away the best offense in the NFL last season. Their best player was Jahmyr Gibbs, the running back who established himself as one of the best players in the league last season. Gibbs’ breakout campaign led to an incredible year in fantasy football leagues, but how will the Alabama product perform in 2025?
Jahmyr Gibbs’ 2024 fantasy football statistics
The Lions were first in the NFL with 33.2 points per game. Jared Goff proved that he is more than just a game manager. Amon-Ra St. Brown had a huge year as a receiver. Jameson Williams finally bucked the injury bug and his suspension issues, and tight end Sam LaPorta built off a great rookie season.
The backfield was what was most special, though. Gibbs technically wasn’t the listed starter for most of the year. That honor belonged to David Montgomery, who ran for 775 yards and 12 touchdowns.
Gibbs added 1,412 yards and 16 touchdowns on the ground. Together, the duo carried the football 435 times, so there were plenty of attempts to go around for what was one of the best backfield duos in recent memory.
Gibbs was the Sonic to Montgomery’s Knuckles because Gibbs provided the speed and elusiveness, whereas Montgomery was more of a power back. All in all, Gibbs finished as the No. 3 running back in standard leagues with 310.9 fantasy points to his name.
He was even better in PPR leagues as his 362.9 fantasy points were the most among running backs. He even outscored Saquon Barkley in PPR leagues, and the Philadelphia Eagles star was just the ninth 2,000-yard rusher ever.
Jahmyr Gibbs’ 2025 fantasy football projections
Junfu Han-USA TODAY Sports
The Lions’ backfield should still work as a great tandem in 2025, but Gibbs will take on a bigger role and start to separate himself from Montgomery, especially because of Montgomery’s injury to end last year.
Gibbs is a recent first-round pick, whereas Montgomery is already 28 years old. Even with the potential for a bigger role, Gibbs is projected to run for 1,154 yards and 11 touchdowns in 2024.
The monster numbers Gibbs put up last year might not be sustainable, especially when it comes to punching the ball into the end zone. Gibbs’ expected statistical regression could also be pinned on Ben Johnson, one of the best play callers in the NFL and Gibbs’ previous offensive coordinator, bolting to become the Chicago Bears head coach.
Just because Gibbs’ numbers are expected to drop doesn’t mean he is expected to get worse as a player. In fact, the running back probably hasn’t hit his prime yet.
Everything went right for Gibbs last season, though, so repeating the crazy numbers he put up last season seems unrealistic. Fantasy football managers have seen players like Saquon Barkley and Christian McCaffrey put up huge numbers one season and then struggle with injuries the next.
McCaffrey was a great example of that last year. He was the consensus No. 1 pick in fantasy in 2024 because he accumulated over 2,000 scrimmage yards in 2023, but he played just four games and no scores last season after fantasy owners invested premier capital on him.
Jahmyr Gibbs’ fantasy football running back rankings
Fantasy football managers might undervalue Gibbs right now because, at age 23, he might perform even better this year than he did last year. His current average draft position is fourth overall as he trails Ja’Marr Chase, Bijan Robinson, and Saquon Barkley, according to fantasypros.com.
Gibbs could outperform all of them, especially the other running backs. As mentioned above, Barkley has often alternated between great and subpar seasons, and it isn’t for sure that Robinson’s Atlanta Falcons will have a good offense this season. Drafting Gibbs after either of those running backs would provide great value for fantasy football managers.
The post Jahmyr Gibbs’ fantasy football outlook for 2025 NFL season appeared first on ClutchPoints.
