Amon-Ra St. Brown is one of the most gifted wide receivers across the NFL, and for a brief moment in time this offseason, the Detroit Lions star was the highest-paid player at the position.
It’s easy to see why the Browns signed St. Brown to a four-year contract worth $120 million the day before the 2024 NFL Draft began. After all, St. Brown has caught 315 passes for 3,588 yards with 21 touchdowns across his first three seasons since sliding all the way to the fourth-round of the 2021 NFL Draft.
“He’s not just speed,” Los Angeles Rams safety Quentin Lake told Heavy by phone, shortly after the Super Bowl. “He’s not just strength. He’s not just hands. You know, he has everything.
“Amon-Ra and Jared Goff do a great job of lining it up each and every Sunday. The biggest thing about him is that he’s smart, too. He’s really smart. He understands his offense, and how the defense is going to attack him. He’s stronger than you think, and has a lot more speed than you would think.”
Even with his impressive numbers, St. Brown may be among the more underrated players at the position.
“He reminds me a lot of Hines Ward,” a rival NFC executive told Heavy of St. Brown’s potential. “He’s tough, he’s smart, he can break off big plays after the catch, and he can block. The kid’s just a winner.”
Big Things Ahead of Amon-Ra St. Brown
As the 2024 season approaches, St. Brown’s best football might be in front of him.
Over at Pro Football Focus, Mason Cameron put together a list of the top ‘triple-threat’ wide receivers across the league, with St. Brown as one of the headliners.
“Just another point in a series of analytical measures to reinforce the massive extension St. Brown signed this offseason,” Cameron writes for PFF. “In his third season, the All-Pro ranked above the 72nd percentile in all three of the recorded facets, an incredible feat, given his sizable volume. St. Brown amassed the second-most targets in the league this past season yet managed to create open separation on 81.5% of targets. And he hauled in 51% of his contested targets.
“But, where St. Brown really shined was after the catch, finishing above the 84th percentile in yards after catch per reception. His 677 yards after the catch in the regular season were the most at the position, powered by 17 missed tackles forced after the catch.”
Given another season of familiarity with quarterback Jared Goff, and added attention paid to Jameson Williamson the opposite perimeter, St. Brown could see an opportunity to create even more big plays in 2024.
