Amon-Ra St. Brown emerged as one of the brightest young wide receivers in the NFL in 2021. He’s showing early in 2022 that he’s not going anywhere.
The Lions picked up their first win of the season Sunday, beating the Commanders 36-27 behind four touchdown passes from Jared Goff. St. Brown caught two of them during yet another big day as one of Detroit’s leaders on offense.
St. Brown also added to an impressive streak that started near the end of the 2021 campaign. He continues to build on a standout start to his NFL career.
“He’s as steady as they come. I mean, he is steady as a rock,” Lions coach Dan Campbell said. “You can always depend on what he’s going to bring, not just on Sunday but on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. He’s been that way since he walked in the door as a rookie and nothing has changed.”
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The Sporting News looks at the numbers behind St. Brown’s streak and his performance on Sunday.
Amon-Ra St. Brown, by the numbers
Stats vs. Commanders
St. Brown finished Sunday’s contest with nine catches for 116 yards and a pair of touchdowns. He also rushed twice for 68 yards.
Both touchdowns came during important moments.
The first was a 13-yard reception from Goff in the first quarter for Detroit’s first touchdown of the game. It made the score 12-0.
.@amonra_stbrown going 🆙#WASvsDET | 📺 FOX pic.twitter.com/9ZOSRFiP6s
— Detroit Lions (@Lions) September 18, 2022
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The second came in the fourth quarter after Washington had scored to cut Detroit’s lead to 29-21. There were concerns of a collapse after the Lions saw their 22-0 halftime lead shrink to a single score.
.@amonra_stbrown is him!#WASvsDET | 📺 FOX pic.twitter.com/0uQWRVTyxh
— Detroit Lions (@Lions) September 18, 2022
Streak of receptions
When Campbell describes St. Brown as “steady,” it’s not just coachspeak. The numbers back it up.
With his nine receptions, St. Brown tied Michael Thomas and Antonio Brown for the longest streak of games (eight) with at least eight receptions. He began his streak with a 10-catch, 86-yard game against the Vikings in Week 13 last season.
As impressive, he has caught 68 of 91 passes during that run, a catch rate of 74.7 percent.
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Games of eight or more receptions to begin his career
That streak has pushed St. Brown into rare company.
With that eighth game of at least eight receptions, St. Brown is tied with the Dolphins’ Jaylen Waddle for most games of at least eight catches through a player’s first 18 games in NFL history, according to Stathead. No other receiver has reached seven.
Justin Jefferson, Odell Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry each had six such stat lines in their first 18 games.
