Dan Campbell sends clear message to John Morton about Detroit Lions' offense

Mike Moraitis

Dan Campbell sends clear message to John Morton about Detroit Lions' offense image

Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Detroit Lions are at their best offensively when both Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery are regularly touching the football and the rushing attack is thriving.

However, Montgomery hasn't been getting a lot of work in two of the last three games and Lions head coach Dan Campbell has certainly taken notice.

Montgomery saw just nine carries in Week 4 and a season-low four carries in Week 6 against the Kansas City Chiefs. His lack of touches on Sunday night was especially egregious after he was cooking the Chiefs' defense early on.

Meanwhile, Gibbs struggled to get going versus Kansas City, which should have led to an adjustment and more work for Montgomery.

On Tuesday, Campbell indirectly sent a clear message to offensive coordinator John Morton: get Montgomery the ball more.

"Lions coach Dan Campbell said that he would like to get RB David Montgomery a bigger piece of the pie in the rushing attack," The Detroit News' Nolan Bianchi reported.

Gibbs has seen 49.7% of the team's carries this season, while Montgomery is getting 37.1%.

That is a slight uptick for Gibbs, who saw 46.7% of the carries to Montgomery's 34.6% in 2024, but it is certainly worth noting that the latter missed three games last season, which skews those numbers, otherwise they would be closer.

It's clear the Lions are making an effort to get Gibbs more touches, and while it is hard to argue with that approach, it does take the power element Montgomery offers out of the offense, which can help wear down opposing defenses.

Rest assured, if Campbell wants more Montgomery, Morton is going to give it to him.

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Mike Moraitis

Mike Moraitis is a freelance writer who covers the NFL for the Sporting News. Over his nearly two decades covering sports, Mike has also worked for Bleacher Report, USA TODAY and FanSided. He hates writing in the third person.