Jahmyr Gibbs had just handled the heaviest rushing workload of his NFL career.

His assessment of how he felt afterward?

“Fine.”

Then Gibbs looked up and saw the crowd of reporters waiting at his locker.

“Whoa.”

There was plenty to ask about.

Gibbs carried the ball 29 times for 156 yards and two touchdowns, and caught five passes for another 30 yards in the Detroit Lions’ 31-30 overtime victory over the New Orleans Saints. His 34 total touches accounted for 186 yards from scrimmage as Detroit leaned heavily on its star running back throughout the season opener. The Lions highlighted Gibbs’ workload as one of the defining performances of the victory.

For Gibbs, there was nothing complicated about it.

“It doesn’t matter to me. I’m just trying to help the team win, no matter what that looks like.”

Campbell Rode the Hot Hand

The 29 carries represented a career high for Gibbs, immediately raising the question of whether Detroit wants to ask that much of him regularly.

Dan Campbell made an important distinction afterward.

He liked the production. He liked the victory. He is not looking to turn 29 carries into the weekly target.

“You know what I like? Winning the game, man. That guy’s our hot hand. Ultimately, do I want to set records with how many carries? No. That’s not something I want to do.”

Campbell also believes Gibbs is physically prepared to handle more responsibility than he has in the past.

“He’s in the best shape I’ve seen him in since he’s been here. Now, that doesn’t mean we’re not going to monitor him and keep an eye on him, because we understand that, too. But we did what we had to do today.”

That fits what Gibbs has been saying for months. When questions surfaced during the offseason about taking on a larger role, he made clear that a heavier Lions workload did not concern him.

Week 1 provided the first real test.

He handled it.

Gibbs Still Has Connection With David Montgomery

Sunday also marked the beginning of a new reality for Gibbs.

David Montgomery is no longer sharing Detroit’s backfield with him, ending a partnership that helped define the Lions’ rushing attack over the previous three seasons.

The relationship remains intact.

Gibbs said the two exchanged messages before their respective season openers.

“I told him, ‘Good luck.’ He told me, ‘Good luck,’ before the game. I was happy for him. I was looking at the stats to see how he was hooping, but we’ll talk about it later.”

Without Montgomery, Detroit entered 2026 knowing more responsibility could fall on Gibbs. That expectation only increased after the Lions committed to him long term and entered the season with him firmly established as one of the offense’s foundational players. He was recently identified as one of Detroit’s biggest offseason winners.

Against New Orleans, the theory became reality.

Campbell Thinks Gibbs Has More Coming

The remarkable part is that Campbell did not sound as though Detroit had seen Gibbs at his best.

Far from it.

“I thought it was a very promising Week 1. Certainly, we know what Gibbs is and what he’s capable of, and he’s still not there yet. I mean that in a good way. I’m telling you, we were this close to breaking three or four more of these wide open. I mean, a shoestring away.”

Gibbs averaged 5.4 yards per carry despite his longest run going for only 21 yards. Campbell believes several of those plays were a block or missed tackle away from becoming much bigger gains.

That is worth remembering when evaluating the workload.

Detroit does not appear interested in handing Gibbs the football 29 times merely to prove it can. Campbell said directly that he does not want to chase carry records.

Sunday called for it, so the Lions kept feeding their most productive player.

Gibbs’ response suggests he will not object when they need to do it again.

ESPN also reported after the game that Gibbs expressed no concern about the career-high workload. ESPN’s report on Gibbs’ 29-carry performance

Detroit may prefer not to make 34 touches the norm.

But when winning requires it, Gibbs appears perfectly comfortable with the assignment.