Last season, Detroit Lions star Amon-Ra St. Brown was tied for the second-most receptions (119), had the third-most receiving yards (1,515) and was tied for the third-most receiving touchdowns (10) in the NFL, leading the team in all three categories as well. He was a big reason why the offense thrived in 2023 and why so many people are buying into the Lions as a team to watch going forward.
St. Brown played 16 of 17 games last year and seemed to have a smooth ride, at least based on his numbers, but revealed in the Netflix series "Receiver" that his 2023 season was a much different story. He suffered a toe injury in Week 2 against the Seattle Seahawks and hurt his oblique a week later versus the Atlanta Falcons.
He ended the game against the Seahawks with a team-high six receptions and 102 yards and had another team-high nine receptions for 102 yards the next week. St. Brown said he thought the oblique injury was a hip pointer, which he's had before.
"I'm like, 'Damn, my toe's still hurting at this point. Now I have this oblique injury,'" St. Brown said.
Detroit had to suit up just a few days later for a game against the Green Bay Packers on Thursday night, and despite describing the pain as an eight or nine out of 10, he wanted to be out there.
"It's too late for me not to play. The game plan's in," St. Brown said of the "Thursday Night Football" divisional matchup. "Painkillers is something that I really don't like to take unless ... unless it's the Packers."
The Lions won the away game and St. Brown had the most receptions on the team, along with 56 yards and a trip to the end zone.
Following that win, an MRI showed that the injury was significant and the team decided to sideline St. Brown for their next game against the Carolina Panthers -- a team that had yet to win a game at that point.
"[The doctors] tell me, 'You tore your oblique completely off the bone,'" St. Brown said.
Head coach Dan Campbell explained why the team decided to give their star wide receiver rest, saying that it was not worth the high risk.
"He may be able to play, and he may be able to function, but if this thing tears even just a little bit more, you're talking about [missing] six weeks, you're talking eight weeks," Campbell said.
Those injuries were not the end of the former fourth-round pick's struggles, however. He then got hand, foot and mouth disease ahead of Week 8, leading to cuts and bumps.
"Had a mask on my face so no one can see what my face was looking like, because it looked so bad," St. Brown said.
He noted how painful it was, but despite the issues the disease came with, he was once again determined to play. The 24-year-old had six receptions for 108 yards in the win over the Las Vegas Raiders.
His girlfriend Brooklyn Adams detailed just how bad it got.
"He was sweating so much that the spots on his hands and his feet turned into open sores and blisters," Adams said. "So he played that entire game with blisters popping."
The Lions currently have the fourth-best odds to win the Super Bowl in 2024 (+1000), according to Caesars Sportsbook. St. Brown's dominance is a key piece to the future success of the team.
