Back in October, Detroit Lions running backs Jahmyr Gibbs, known for his blazing speed, and David Montgomery, known for his bruising and efficient running style, embraced the nicknames of "Sonic and Knuckles," like the famed video game and movie characters.
"Inside of our room, just really excited. Our guys, 'Sonic and Knuckles,' it's official now, I've been warned that that's what they want to be called," Lions running backs and assistant head coach Scottie Montgomery said in October, per Sports Illustrated. "'Sonic and Knuckles' are doing what we ask them to. Certain things we do need to get better at, we'll continue to work at that but we're headed in the right direction."
The dynamic duo is living up to their nicknames through the first 12 weeks of the 2024 season for the NFC-leading 10-1 Lions, who are off to their best 11-game start in team history. Gibbs (10 rushing touchdowns) and Montgomery (11 rushing touchdowns) are the first duo in NFL history each with double-digit rushing touchdowns in consecutive seasons. They also have a rushing touchdown in the same game nine times, which is tied for the third-most by a running back duo in NFL history. Gibbs and Montgomery are also the second-fastest duo to each hit double-digit rushing touchdowns in the same season, trailing only the Hall of Fame Green Bay Packers duo of Jim Taylor and Paul Hornung, which did so in its ninth game during the 1960 season.
And yet, Scottie Montgomery sometimes has trouble grounding them in reality as the two players deal with their on-field success and sometimes morph into their alter egos.
Having Sonic and Knuckles on your team isn’t all it’s cracked up to be 😆 pic.twitter.com/Vz2lVvUPNJ
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) November 26, 2024
Like Sonic, Gibbs is flying up Detroit's all-time running back rankings since he is now just the third Lions running back ever with double-digit rushing touchdowns in each of his first two seasons, joining Hall of Famer Barry Sanders and three-time Pro Bowler Billy Sims. Like Knuckles, Montgomery has been a short-yardage battering ram since coming to Detroit in 2023: his 16 rushing touchdowns of five or fewer yards are the second-most in the NFL among running backs in that span, trailing only Los Angeles Rams running back Kyren Williams and his 17.
With a win on Thanksgiving day against the 4-7 Chicago Bears -- a game you can watch on CBS (or stream on Paramount+) at 12:30 p.m. ET -- Detroit would secure its best 12-game start in team history at 11-1, and they would snap the franchise's seven-game losing streak on Thanksgiving, which is tied for the third-longest by any team. That sounds like a mission for "Sonic and Knuckles" to complete together.
