Allen Park — Amon-Ra St. Brown can famously list off the 16 wide receivers selected before him in the 2021 draft. It’s been an unending source of motivation for the Detroit Lions wideout after sliding to the third day, fourth round and No. 112 overall pick that year.
But he’s since established himself as one of the league’s premier young talents at his position, tying Justin Jefferson and Michael Thomas for the most receptions through two seasons in NFL history. So, maybe it’s time for St. Brown to focus on a new list. Maybe it’s time for St. Brown to think more about the eight receivers picked for this year’s Pro Bowl — instead of Dyami Brown or Amari Rodgers, two of the pass-catchers drafted ahead of St. Brown, who have combined to catch less than 20% of the balls he has through two years.
But, St. Brown doesn’t see it that way. He looks at the list of Pro Bowlers and sees players he respects. Of course, he aims to be considered among the NFL’s upper echelon of his position, but that snub — if you can call it that — doesn’t hold a candle to his draft experience. Those days were scarring, and like any scar, it’s a reminder of an experience that never quite fades.
“That draft, the feelings that I had, the emotion, it’s something I’ll never forget,” St. Brown said. “Those receivers, the Pro Bowl receivers, those are all great receivers. Obviously, I’d loved to have made the Pro Bowl, but those are all phenomenal receivers who I love to watch. I’m not saying there’s nobody in my draft class I don’t love to watch either, but just the feeling that I had during that draft, it’s something I’ll never forget. That alone motivates me. It just brings me back to that time, being able to remember how I felt. It reminds me to never get complacent and forget how you felt that day. That allows me to keep working harder, keep doing extra work.”
That fuel has propelled St. Brown to one of the most productive starts for a receiver in NFL and franchise history. On top of his record-matching 196 catches, his 2,073 receiving yards fell just 14 shy of Calvin Johnson’s franchise mark through two seasons.
And just in terms of the 2022 campaign, St. Brown finished in the top 10 in receptions, yards, first-down catches and yards after the catch, the latter being an area of emphasis coming into the season. Plus, he developed into one of the league’s premier threats on third down, extending 23 drives with a grab. Only Jefferson and four-time Pro Bowler Amari Cooper had more first-down receptions on third down.
But if there’s an area St. Brown is lagging behind the game’s elites, it’s the damage he’s been able to do per reception. Among the 22 players with at least 1,000 yards receiving this season, St. Brown’s 11.0 yards per catch ranks 21st.
That anchoring metric is a confluence of factors, including Detroit’s scheme, St. Brown’s heavy usage in the slot and his relatively average size and straight-line speed. Yet, despite all that, he’s wary of being pigeonholed as a possession receiver. He’s hoping there will be more opportunities to develop a bigger role in Detroit’s budding deep-passing attack.
“It’s funny you ask that; it’s definitely something I wish I did more,” St. Brown said. “I don’t really get the ball thrown to me too much down the field. So, I’m not getting some of these opportunities some of the other players are getting. That’s something I want to get more opportunities to do going forward, having the ball thrown down the field, and not just catching it after 5 yards and making guys miss. I want to catch it 25, 30 yards down the field. You watch my tape this year, I really haven’t had any of those. I haven’t had anything over the shoulder, really.”
We did check the tape, and St. Brown is correct. Of his 146 targets, only 13 (8.9%) traveled 15 yards beyond the line of scrimmage, and none went 25 yards. Furthermore, he only had one true vertical route, running up the seam from the left slot for a 25-yard gain in the team’s Week 14 victory over the Minnesota Vikings.
Comparatively, St. Brown saw 101 throws (69.2%) inside 10 yards of the line of scrimmage.
Pro Football Focus tracks targets 20 or more yards downfield and St. Brown’s nine ranked 74th this past season. The eight Pro Bowl receivers averaged 28.3 such targets.
“That’s something, moving forward, I want to do more of, and I think I will get to do more of that,” he said. “That’s something I want to do, personally. Yeah, I want to do all the third-down stuff and all that, but I want to catch balls down the field, too. I want to do that stuff and I know I can. I’ve done it in college, done it my whole life, and I know I can do it at this level.”
jdrogers@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @Justin_Rogers