Lions’ David Montgomery, Jahmyr Gibbs make demand for Sonic-themed nickname

Every sports fan loves a good nickname, and that’s especially the case when it’s a nickname that applies to an entire unit or a group of players. In the past, we’ve seen backfields with the all-too-appropriate nicknames of Thunder and Lightning (Ron Dayne and Tiki Barber), Smash and Dash (Lendale White and Chris Johnson) and WD40 (Warrick Dunn and Mike Alstott). But now, the Detroit Lions have submitted a new entry into this club, and it’s one that every Millennial football fan will surely get behind it.

Going forward, the Detroit Lions duo of Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery have requested — no, demanded — that they be called ‘Sonic and Knuckles.’

“‘It’s official now, I’ve been warned that that’s what they want to be called,” Lions running backs coach Scottie Montgomery said of this duo, per Benjamin Raven of Michigan Live. “‘Sonic and Knuckles’ are doing what we ask them to do. As you can see, if you watch David, he is a huge fan of cartoons and Disney channels and ‘Sonic and Knuckles.’ And speed and then also the brashness of Knuckles. They love it, so I’m gonna run with it.”

The Detroit Lions would be wise to continue running not only with the nickname, but also with their plan to utilize what is arguably the league’s best running back duo as much as possible. In splitting Montgomery and Gibbs’ touches as close to 50/50 as possible, Detroit is keeping a fresh back in the game at all times to run over and past defenders.

“We’re just reducing the mileage, and they look so fresh when they’re in the game,” Scottie Montgomery said. “It’s like, next guy comes in, there are no hands on the waist. There is nobody bending over. They have a look, they’ll look at each other and just look, and they know — ‘OK, I’m not 100% coming in. You be 100%.’ So, really appreciate that.”

Lions hope ‘Sonic and Knuckles’ can lead run to a Super Bowl 

Detroit Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs (26) celebrates with running back David Montgomery (5) after scoring a touchdown against the Seattle Seahawks in the second quarter at Ford Field.
© Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images

Just as is the case with the popular video game, where collecting gold rings is one of the primary objectives of players, the Lions are hoping they can ride their own ‘Sonic and Knuckles’ to a Super Bowl ring.

Since their partnership began at the start of last season, the Lions have wisely distributed touches between David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs. Thus far, the splits have been so even, it’s almost as if head coach Dan Campbell is making a conscious effort to ensure that both Sonic and Knuckles are getting the exact same amount of touches.

Montgomery – 320 touches, 1,577 total yards from scrimmage, 19 total touchdowns

Gibbs – 314 touches, 1,713 total yards from scrimmage, 15 total touchdowns

Combine Sonic and Knuckles with a quarterback playing better than he ever has (Jared Goff), a terrific wide receiver duo (Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams), a young tight end with star potential (Sam LaPorta) and a mad scientist serving as offensive coordinator (Ben Johnson), and voila, you have one of the league’s best offenses and a bonafide Super Bowl contender.

The post Lions’ David Montgomery, Jahmyr Gibbs make demand for Sonic-themed nickname appeared first on ClutchPoints.


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