Jahmyr Gibbs and Amon-Ra St. Brown have separated themselves from the rest of the NFL offense, becoming the first teammates since 1962 to each score at least five touchdowns through a team’s first three games. The pair accounted for 11 of Detroit’s 31 points in a 31-24 victory over the New York Jets, a result that pushes the Lions to 2-1 on the season.
Historic Scoring Pace
St. Brown has scored five receiving touchdowns through three weeks, while Gibbs has tallied six total scores, including four rushing and two receiving. Gibbs and St. Brown became the first teammates since 1962 to each score at least five touchdowns through their team’s first three games of a season. The last duo to achieve this feat was Abner Haynes and Chris Burford of the Dallas Texans.
Gibbs has evolved into a unique offensive weapon, becoming the first player in NFL history to reach 300 rushing yards, four rushing touchdowns, 150 receiving yards, and two receiving touchdowns in the first three games of a season. He finished Sunday with 164 total yards and three scores against the Jets, shortening his odds to win Offensive Player of the Year to +300. Gibbs was already the front-runner before Sunday.
St. Brown Plays Through Issue
While Gibbs dominated the stat sheet, St. Brown played fewer snaps due to a minor physical issue, yet still found the end zone. St. Brown caught four of his eight targets for 19 yards and a touchdown against the Jets. Despite the limited opportunities, his scoring pace remains historic, and his ability to finish drives remains the team’s most reliable asset.
Defensive Roles Expand
Dan Campbell praised the defensive effort, specifically highlighting linebacker Trevor Nowaske and cornerback Ennis Rakestraw for their expanded roles. Nowaske played in half of the defensive snaps, more than any linebacker not named Jack Campbell or Derrick Barnes. Campbell noted that Nowaske’s discipline in the run game and Rakestraw’s coverage against Garrett Wilson earned them more opportunities moving forward.
Celebration Fines Mocked
Off the field, Amon-Ra St. Brown responded to a massive $60,000 in fines for his smoking celebrations with a satirical AI video. St. Brown posted a hilarious AI-generated video to Instagram on Monday that takes the entire situation to another level. The video depicted a referee lighting a cigar for St. Brown, who then passed it to Gibbs and Jameson Williams, mocking the league’s crackdown on his post-touchdown antics.
Explosive Plays Limited
Despite the win, the offense struggled to generate big plays against a Jets defense coached by former Lions coordinator Aaron Glenn. The Lions’ offense was built around big plays in both the passing and running games, but none of that was working on Sunday. Gibbs’ longest play was only 17 yards, and St. Brown and Jameson Williams combined for just 68 yards on eight catches with only 4 yards after the catch.
Offensive Line Protection Issues
The Lions’ offense got off to a slow start due to a handful of blown protections for quarterback Jared Goff. Gibbs got beat on a couple of delayed blitz pickups dialed up by the Jets, putting Goff on the ground and stalling out those drives. Backup running back Sione Vaki picked up some of that slack, earning six carries for 26 yards and an 11-yard catch in his biggest role of the career.
This article was created by aggregating Detroit Lions news using Artificial Intelligence.
