Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown has been one of the most productive pass catchers in the NFL over the last two-plus seasons. Last season, he finished tied for second in receptions (119), third in receiving yards (1,515) and tied for fourth in touchdown receptions (10).
St. Brown missed one game last season, and he recently revealed the full extent of the stuff he dealt with over the course of the season via Netflix's show "Receiver". A toe issue, an oblique muscle that was torn "completely off the bone" and later a bout with hand, foot and mouth disease he played a full game with.
St. Brown has taken his place among the best wide receivers in the NFL, and this offseason he became one of the highest-paid with a nice contract extension. But could he have another level of production in him?
Big accomplishment put in play for Amon-Ra St. Brown in 2024
Jeff Kerr of CBS Sports recently wrote about some NFL offseason storylines and deemed them as "overreactions" or "reality." Some are unavoidable/ongoing (Dak Prescott, Brandon Aiyuk), but apparently there's been a "storyline" regarding St. Brown.
On the "overreaction or reality" spectrum, Kerr has the notion St. Brown will lead the league in receptions this year as a "reality."
"St. Brown played through serious toe and oblique injuries during the early portion of last season. He also had hand, foot, and mouth disease at one point last season, adding even more problems toward keeping his body 100%."
Despite all this, St. Brown still had 119 catches for 1,515 yards and 10 touchdowns, His 119 catches were tied for second in the NFL, fighting through all the pain to become one of the NFL's top playmakers.
What if St. Brown is healthy all year? Especially in a Lions offense tailored to his strengths? St. Brown is going to catch a lot of passes in 2024, the top playmaker on an offense full of them."
CeeDee Lamb led the league with 135 receptions last season, 16 ahead of St. Brown and Tyreek Hill. The previous four seasons, the league leader in catches had 128 (2022), 145 (2021), 127 (2020) and 149 (2019). Michael Thomas' 149 catches in 2019 is the single-season record, and Cooper Kupp got close to it in 2021.
If St. Brown can be fully healthy this year, another uptick in production could come. Say it takes 135 receptions to lead the league. That's a per-game average of 7.9 catches per game over 17 games. St. Brown's 17-game pace last year was 126 catches (7.4 per game), as physically compromised as he was at times.
Two Lions have led the NFL in receptions in a season, Calvin Johnson (2012) and Herman Moore (1995 and 1997-tied). St. Brown could very well be the third at some point in his career, and doing it this year shouldn't be ruled out.