The Lions are working to keep “Sonic and Knuckles” fit in the home stretch

ALLEN PARK – David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs have approved their new nickname for their one-two punch out of the Detroit Lions backfield.

This is how everyone gets to know the newly christened running back duo “Sonic and Knuckles”. The one-two punch is one of the deadliest combinations in the league, and the Lions plan to use both combinations in a 50-50 ratio as often as possible to keep everyone fresh down the stretch.

“…'Sonic and Knuckles' – it's official now, I was warned they wanted to be called that – 'Sonic and Knuckles' are doing what we ask of them,” Scottie Montgomery, the running backs coach and assistant coach the team's head coach said Wednesday. “As you can tell when you see David, he's a big fan of cartoons and Disney channels and 'Sonic and Knuckles.' And speed and then also the audacity of Knuckles.

“And of course I knew about it because I have children, right? So “Sonic and Knuckles,” I think it works well. They love it, so I’m going to run with it.”

The coach even joked that the PB&J nickname is dead for the two of them, and that's because no NFL player wants to be called “Jelly” in that part of the equation.

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Scottie Montgomery said the beauty of this pairing is keeping the pair fit in the home stretch. They each bring a different flavor and even have an unspoken language in case someone isn't 100% satisfied and needs a breather.

David Montgomery has recorded 137 offensive snaps in five games, accounting for less than 50% of the team's reps. And Gibbs played 182 games, just over 50% of those offensive reps. Montgomery usually sets the tone in the first quarter, then Gibbs gets his chance to eat before they get back into the rotation depending on the flow of the game.

But when it comes to touches and rush attempts, David Montgomery leads the way with 75 runs and 10 catches on all 10 targets sent to him. Gibbs has managed 66 rushes and recovered 14 of the 18 passes sent to him to this point. And it sounds like everything is going according to plan with this powerful device.

The Lions rank eighth with 4.8 yards per rush attempt and also have the third-most runs in that department with 165 attempts through five games. Pro Football Focus ranks David Montgomery third among all running backs with 260 yards after contact and 18 forced missed tackles.

“It just works differently somehow. But you know, we talked about it being built for the long term,” Scottie Montgomery said. “And when you talk about the long haul, both of them are out there at the same time, which we've been able to do a little bit better now. I'll start with this. There are things we can do schematically to help ourselves. But the truth is that backs are all about the wear and tear on the back. How they get through week 13 and week 14, how they feel. If we can continue to hit these guys at 50-50 or sometimes 60-40, we can reduce the number of hits they take.

“We’re just reducing the mileage and they look so fresh when they’re in the game. It's like the next guy comes in and they don't have any hands on their waist. Nobody bends over there. They take a look, they look at each other and just look, and they know, “Okay, I'm not 100% there. They’re 100% on board. “I really appreciate that.”

David Montgomery is here for the long haul and extended his existing contract by two years at the weekend. And Gibbs just got his rookie contract, so get used to “Sonic and Knuckles” setting the tone for these running-mad Lions.

“When you have David, he holds other people accountable by holding himself accountable,” Scottie Montgomery said. “So, you know, in the building, I've said this before, I see David and Dan (Campbell) in the same way, man, it's just like people who are leaders, who do it right and who do the most demands from the people around them.

“When you have these guys in the locker room on your team, you have a great chance to win.”

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