Lions' Sione Vaki 'starting to graduate,' earn trust at running back

ALLEN PARK — Late in the fourth quarter against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, Nov. 1, as the Detroit Lions were driving to take the lead in their eventual 19-15 win , the crowd at Ford Field began chanting running back Sione Vaki's name. Vaki, who entered the contest with 74 yards on 23 rushes across 33 career appearances, carried the ball 11 times for 65 yards. He forced a career-best four missed tackles, according to Pro Football Focus, and had three rushes of 10 or more yards, tied with Arizona's Tyler Allgeier for sixth most in the NFL in Week 8. "I was pretty emotional on the sideline with him because I know what it takes, I know how hard he's worked, I know some of his setbacks. ... It had me emotional to hear 'Vaki! Vaki! Vaki!' from the stands. That felt pretty good, so I could only imagine what it felt like for him," Lions associate head coach and wide receivers coach Scottie Montgomery said. Montgomery previously coached Detroit's running backs from 2023-24. He helped develop Vaki, a fourth-round draft pick in 2024 who mostly played safety at Utah, while Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery topped the depth chart. But with Montgomery traded to the Houston Texans this offseason and Isiah Pacheco (back) on injured reserve and out until at least December, the Lions have had a void at RB2. Early in the season, the offense had simply leaned heavily on Gibbs, who is on pace to become the sixth player in league history to touch the ball more than 450 times in a single season. On Sunday, though, the Lions turned it Vaki, and he repaid them with promising production, opening the door for some responsibilities to be taken off of Gibbs' plate. "I think it's a confidence-builder," quarterback Jared Goff said of Vaki's performance. "I think Dan (Campbell) said it, the trust that he builds with us and the coaches, it's like, 'OK, this guy can do some of that stuff.' "Sometimes you have to see it happen to believe it, for him as a player. We've always known he's always capable of it, but for him as a young player in the league to be able to have that success and feel it and see it come to life, I think it only builds so much more confidence for him to keep going." Vaki has been a key special teamer since joining the Lions, seeing 642 snaps on coordinator Dave Fipp's unit, including 124 this season, tied with Tay Martin for second most on the team. Watching a player who's been such a crucial piece on special teams become impactful on offense brings Fipp joy. "I call it graduating, you're starting to graduate and work yourself up the ladder," Fipp said. "People are starting to realize what you can do and bring to the table. He's obviously been a great player. It's no surprise to me that the guy's a good running back, too. "There's nothing like seeing it. It's like watching your kid out there, a guy that you've been close to and worked a lot with and hasn't had the chances carrying the ball and doing that stuff that he's wanted, I'm sure forever. But he got the opportunity and made the most of it. It's definitely gratifying." rsilva@detroitnews.com @rich_silva18