There were a ton of questions about the Detroit Lions that needed to be answered in the 2025 season. Perhaps at the top of the list was the loss of both their coordinators and how the team would fare without them. Through the first five weeks of the season, it has become abundantly clear that the Lions haven’t lost their drive one bit. They have been firing on all cylinders after a Week 1 stumble against the Green Bay Packers.
That has included a return to form on both the offensive and defensive ends, with their combination of the dual running back approach with David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs starting to dominate again. Their domination led them to the doorstep of history against the Cincinnati Bengals, in a double special game for the former.
How Did David Montgomery Turn His Homecoming Into a Historic Occasion?
A Cincinnati native, Montgomery confessed before the game that he’d never played in his home city since leaving. That was already going to make it an emotional night for him. But the night turned extra special for one key reason.
“I think it’s really special for me cause my sister gets to come to that game,” he revealed in an interview on the Up & Adams Show. When asked about it, he admitted, “Almost a year and half ago, my sister met in a car accident. Now, she’s paralyzed from the neck down.”
He revealed that it was the first game she would be seeing him play, “I’m super super excited about that. I’m just happy that she’s going to be there.” Undeniably, the game was going to be a very emotional affair.
But it turned historic quickly. Midway through the third quarter, Montgomery drove in for a touchdown, extending the Detroit lead to 28-3. With his sister in attendance, it was understandably an emotional moment for the family, as cameras cut away to catch her reaction.
David Montgomery scores a touchdown in his hometown ✅
You know this one had extra meaning, as it was in front of his sister who is paralyzed after a car accident last year 💙pic.twitter.com/ZKF4qSOMSl https://t.co/KKj6vXjKIe
— St. Brown Podcast (@StBrownPodcast) October 5, 2025
However, his touchdown, paired with Gibbs’s earlier touchdown, made this the 14th time both running backs scored in the same game. It tied the legendary duo of Emmitt Smith and Daryl Johnston for the all-time record.
Smith and Johnston were together for a decade, while the Sonic & Knuckles duo, as the fan base has nicknamed Gibbs and Montgomery, are five games into their third season together. An extremely emotional night for Montgomery turned into an iconic record being broken for the duo.