Coming into Thanksgiving day, Jahmyr Gibbs is eighth in the NFL in rushing yards and tied for fourth for rushing touchdowns. His backfield partner, David Montgomery, is 18th in yards and second in touchdowns.
It has earned the duo the nickname of "Sonic and Knuckles," a nod to the Sega video game characters who first appeared alongside each other in a 1994 game where they collaborate to take down their arch-rival, Dr. Robotnik.
The duo met mascot versions of their nickname inspiration before their Thanksgiving day game against the Bears in a cool moment:
Team Sonic pic.twitter.com/DjDSVVKK9h
— Detroit Lions (@Lions) November 28, 2024
A closer look at the clip reveals awesome Sonic and Knuckles jackets that Gibbs and Montgomery are wearing. Earlier this week, CBS put out a funny Sonic and Knuckles-themed promotional for the Thanksgiving game.
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
It helps that Paramount+, the CBS streaming service, produces the Knuckles (2024) show and Sonic movies, of which the third is scheduled to hit theaters in December. Lots of serendipitous synergy.
While most backfields like this circle the drain and wind up becoming committees which result in both players boasting merely average stat lines, these two have bucked the trend. Both are getting significant touches and putting up RB1-level lines.
It has culminated in the Lions going into Thanksgiving week with a 10-1 record, best in the NFC and tied for best in the NFL.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as David Montgomery, Jahmyr Gibbs Shared Cool Moment With Real Life Sonic and Knuckles.
