As ESPN rolls out their position-by-position top-10 rankings ahead of the 2026 season, based on polling of high-level people around the NFL, Detroit Lions fans eagerly awaited the outlet's wide receiver rankings to see where Amon-Ra St. Brown, in particular, would land.
St. Brown came in at No. 5 in ESPN's wide receiver rankings for this year, behind Ja'Marr Chase, Justin Jefferson, Jaxson Smith-Njigba and Puka Nacua. The resumes of Chase and Jefferson make the case for their spots, while the massive seasons Smith-Njigba and Nacua had in 2025 vaulted them up the rankings this year.
Even the notes provided by ESPN regarding St. Brown's place in the ranking seemed to make a case for him to be higher. A lengthy quote from an NFL coordinator highlighted the extra edge the "Sun God" has played with since Day 1.
"Savvy, knack for getting open, plays faster than his timed speed," an NFL coordinator said. "He's putting continuous stress on you even when you know he's not going vertical. He has a unique way of working leverage. Strong as hell, can separate at the point and is shifty, plays as if he's being disrespected at all times."
1 number further proves Amon-Ra St. Brown should've been ranked higher by ESPN
According to Fantasy Points Data, in some correlation to what the anonymous NFL coordinator said to ESPN, St. Brown led the league with a 52.5 percent separation win rate against press coverage last season. He lapped the field, over 13 percent better than second place with second through sixth place separated by just four percent.
Separation Win Rates vs. Press Coverage
— Fantasy Points Data (@FantasyPtsData) July 14, 2026
1. Amon-Ra St. Brown (52.5%) 🤯
2. Cedric Tillman (39.1%)
3. Keenan Allen (38.5%)
4. Zay Flowers (38.2%)
5. Mike Evans (38.1%)
6. Puka Nacua (35.1%)
...
59. Jahan Dotson (10.8%)
Worst / 60. Emeka Egbuka (10.8%) 💩 pic.twitter.com/M2GFcyiPmG
In large part to the "troubling" combination of being of being less than ideal size and being slow when timed running in a straight line without pads on at the NFL Combine, St. Brown fell to the fourth round of the 2021 draft.
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St. Brown is yet another example of why there's way more to being a successful wide receiver than measurables, as a tape measure, a scale and a stopwatch cannot measure someone's heart, proficiency when running routes and a number of other things.
Being as successful as he is against press coverage, when receivers can legally be contacted within five yards of the line of scrimmage, is a clear reflection of how St. Brown plays. Via a mix of technical/physical ability and sheer determination, he's going to win that close-range hand-fight more often than not, and it's no surprise opposing defenders don't succeed in press coverage as often as they do against other wide receivers.
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