After Amon-Ra St. Brown caught four passes in the Lions' win over the Bears last week to reach 100 receptions on the season, Kalif Raymond lifted him into the air in Detroit's locker room and screamed, "We got a hundred and a thousand!!"
Entering Week 18 of his second NFL season, St. Brown is one of only five receivers with 100 catches and 1,000 yards to his name. The others: Justin Jefferson, Tyreek Hill, Stefon Diggs and CeeDee Lamb. He's the first Lion to reach those numbers since Calvin Johnson in 2012 and just the second this century. This is the company he keeps.
"Those are a bunch of great receivers," St. Brown said Thursday. "Shoot, just to be in the conversation with them is awesome. I’m just blessed to be in the situation that I am with this team. I love our coaches, love Jared (Goff), our offense, our whole team. It’s just a testament to all the hard work we put in starting at the end of last season."
As he prepares for Sunday night's season finale in Green Bay, St. Brown has crossed one goal off his list with another maybe, just maybe, within reach.
"I wanted 100-plus, that was one of my goals. And then it was actually 1,300 yards, so I’m a little shy of that, but that was another one of my goals," he said. "I hit one of them, which is pretty cool."
He likely would have plowed past both of them had he not missed essentially three games to injuries in October. If he had played his normal allotment of snaps across the whole season, St. Brown would be on pace for 120 catches and 1,425 yards. And maybe that would have been enough to get him into the Pro Bowl. He's the only receiver in the 100-1,000 club this season who was left out.
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In the NFC, St. Brown was beaten out by Jefferson, Lamb, A.J. Brown and Terry McLaurin. Asked if he felt snubbed at all by the voters, St. Brown smiled and said, "I wanted to make the Pro Bowl, I did, I was kind of disappointed."
"But the guys that got picked in front of me are all great receivers," he said. "I think Terry McLaurin has been underrated for the whole time he’s been in this league. Obviously he got paid, which I’m super happy for him, he deserves it. I love his game, I think he’s one of the best wide-outs in this game.
"Like I said, all the guys in front of me can ball. Even though my numbers might have been better in some categories than others, shoot, that’s kind of how it went, whether it was fans’, players’ or coaches’ votes. But I think if we keep winning how we’ve been winning, things like that can change."
Take Sunday night, for example. Having won seven of their last nine games and gunning for the last playoff spot in the NFC, the Lions are playing their first primetime game of the season. With success comes the spotlight, and with the spotlight comes the chance for national respect. St. Brown smiled again at the thought of playing a game with the whole country watching. He's got 1,112 yards this season. Who says 1,300 is out of his grasp?
"A lot of our games are played 1:00 Eastern Time, which is when a lot of the games are played. Prior to this, no Sunday night games, no Monday night games, no Thursday night games. Obviously we had Thanksgiving, but that was our only (national TV) game. So it’s up to us," said St. Brown. "We keep winning, you see the team that has the best record usually has the most players in the Pro Bowl. That’s kind of how that works. If you win, everything else comes with that."
For the record, St. Brown is right. The Eagles have the most Pro Bowlers (8) this season and the best record in the NFC. The Chiefs have the second most (7) and the best record in the AFC. The Lions have one, center Frank Ragnow, and a record of 8-8. It doesn't mean they don't have a star in Amon-Ra St. Brown. Asked if he considers himself one of the top receivers in the league, he said, "Definitely."
"I feel like I can play with the best of ‘em. Obviously everyone is watching on Sundays and everyone has their own opinions, you know how that goes," said St. Brown. "But I feel like myself personally, I can go up against anyone."
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