Despite a very slow start to his rookie campaign, Detroit Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs had his first fantasy football performance of 20+ points in Week 7.
Should you look to sell high after Gibbs’ big fantasy day against the Baltimore Ravens? Let’s take a closer look.
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How Week 7’s Performance Impacts Fantasy Value of Jahmyr Gibbs
The hype train for Gibbs heading into his first NFL season was very real during the fantasy football draft season just a couple of months ago.
Unfortunately, Gibbs saw his fantasy ceiling significantly capped by the role of David Montgomery through the first month of the rookie’s season.
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Gibbs was outscored by Montgomery in every game they played together over the first four weeks of the 2023 season.
Gibbs failed to top 10 fantasy points in three of the Lions’ first four contests while being out-touched by Montgomery 72 to 53 … even with Montgomery inactive for one of those games.
The TD production was an even tougher pill to swallow for Gibbs’ managers. Montgomery produced five scores to Gibbs’ zero during that four-game stretch.
To make matters worse, Gibbs suffered a hamstring injury heading into the team’s Week 5 matchup against the Carolina Panthers, which consequently cost him the next two games.
Just when things were looking bleak for Gibbs’ fantasy outlook, Montgomery suffered a rib injury against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 6, which opened the door to Gibbs’ leading role in Week 7 against the Ravens.
In a feature role and a perfect game script for Gibbs’ skill set, the rookie exploded for 27.6 fantasy points with 68 yards on the ground and a score to go with nine receptions for 58 yards.
This performance can be looked at in a couple of different ways.
Optimistically, this performance could give Gibbs’ truthers confidence that he will continue to build off of this stellar outing and finally begin to live up to the fantasy ceiling many saw for him heading into the 2023 season.
Pessimistically, this performance gives fantasy managers a chance to cash out on Gibbs while his value is the highest it’s been since Week 1.
Personally, I would love to trade Gibbs for a top-15-type return at the running back position if anyone is interested.
The Lions have already proven that Montgomery will be their leading ball carrier when healthy. He could return to the lineup as soon as this week.
If you still believe Gibbs will lead this backfield in 2023, then I would imagine you are going to hold onto him.
However, if Montgomery returns and continues to be the better fantasy producer in this backfield, then you would have no one to blame but yourself if you pass on this sell-high window.