'I Love the Hate': Commanders RB Antonio Gibson Responds to Critics

Antonio Gibson feels the heat and the hate.

Jeremy Brener | Jul 14, 2022

Washington Commanders running back Antonio Gibson has excelled in his first two NFL seasons.

He's rushed for 1,832 yards and 18 touchdowns in his NFL career so far and is due for a big season in 2022. Last year, Gibson was one of seven running backs to rush for over 1,000 yards, but ESPN crafted a report earlier this week from 50 executives that collectively excluded Gibson from the top-10 in the league.

Here's a list of the top-10 ...

Derrick Henry (Tennessee Titans)
Jonathan Taylor (Indianapolis Colts)
Nick Chubb (Cleveland Browns)
Dalvin Cook (Minnesota Vikings)
Alvin Kamara (New Orleans Saints)
Joe Mixon (Cincinnati Bengals)
Christian McCaffrey (Carolina Panthers)
Najee Harris (Pittsburgh Steelers)
Aaron Jones (Green Bay Packers)
Javonte Williams (Denver Broncos)

Gibson wasn't even named an honorable mention. That honor went to Austin Ekeler (Los Angeles Chargers), Ezekiel Elliott (Dallas Cowboys) and Saquon Barkley (New York Giants).

That led Gibson to tweet out his cryptic message.

If Gibson finished 7th in rushing last season, he should be at least one of the top-10 going into this season.

But to not even sniff the top-10 or an honorable mention? Gibson's has a right to feel a little bit heated.

Perhaps Gibson's drop in the rankings has to do with Washington drafting Brian Robinson Jr. in the third round of the draft to complement him, but there's no guarantee that Gibson's production will take a dip.

It appears that Gibson is choosing to use this disappointment as fuel to lead him into the upcoming season, which is only a positive for the Commanders.

Published Jul 14, 2022

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.