With his third multi-touchdown game of the season in Week 10 against the Washington Commanders, Detroit Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs now has 41 total touchdowns in his career. He has also played 41 career regular season games, which makes for some very easy per-game average math.
Last season, Gibbs tied for the league lead in rushing touchdowns (16) while also leading the league and setting the Lions' single-season franchise record with 20 total touchdowns. As a rookie in 2023 he had 10 rushing touchdowns, which served as a preview of the nose for the end zone he has shown ever since, with an ideal mix of explosive runs and short yardage prowess.
As expected, Gibbs' 41 scrimmage touchdowns over the last three seasons are the most in the league over that span.
If Gibbs scores a touchdown against the Philadephia Eagles on Sunday night, according to Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk, he will tie Jim Brown for the fourth-most touchdowns by an NFL player before the age of 24.
Next up on the list of players with the most touchdowns in league history before turning 24 are Randy Moss and Emmitt Smith, both with 43. So Gibbs could tie, or surpass, those Hall of Famers with another multiple touchdown outing on Sunday night.
Jahmyr Gibbs is well lined up to pass a Lions' legend and set an NFL record
The NFL record for the most scrimmage touchdowns before turning 24 is 47, held by Lions' legend Barry Sanders.
Sanders played three full seasons before his 24th birthday. Gibbs is of course currently in his third season, and like Sanders his 24th birthday will also be in the offseason (March 20). So he has the final eight games of the season to score seven total touchdowns, and pass Sanders for the most scrimmage touchdowns in league history before turning 24.
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Sanders is Lions' royalty, and he will never be supplanted as the best running back in franchise history. Gibbs, however, is making a legit early run at eventually being regarded as the second-best running back in franchise history.
In any case, at his current touchdown pace, Gibbs is well in line to take possession of an NFL record Sanders has owned for more than 30 years.