The Detroit Lions have the best running back duo in the NFL with Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery. I don’t think anyone can dispute that. They are an uber-talented duo who keep coming close to the elusive two 1,000-yard backs achievement.

The Lions also have veteran Craig Reynolds and last year’s fourth-round pick Sione Vaki backing them up. Even with all that, running back is still cropping up to be a position to watch for in the 2025 NFL Draft for the Lions.

For starters, is goes back to Lions general manager Brad Holmes saying at the NFL Combine that the Lions are not a needs based drafting team. They’re a team that picks the best player available. That doesn’t mean the Lions are going running back early, but keep an eye on day three and in the undrafted section.

From a future standpoint, the Lions have an out with David Montgomery after this season. They did sign him to a two-year extension in October, but if they decided they wanted to get a younger guy to pair with Gibbs in 2026, the Lions could cut Montgomery with a post June 1st designation next offseason and save quite a bit of money. They’ll save $15 million in 2026 and 2027 combined.

Lastly, the Lions have been paying a lot of attention to running backs during the pre-draft process. They brought in UC-Davis running back Lan Larison for a top 30 visit. They’ll have Central Florida’s Peny Boone in at their local pro day, they talked with LSU running back Josh Williams at the Shrine Bowl, and Boston College running back Treshaun Ward at the Tropical Bowl. That’s just the guys we know about.

Again, don’t expect the Lions to take a guy in the first round. These backs are all expected to go in the sixth, seventh, or undrafted. But keep an eye out for this team to add another guy in that backfield in April.