Getty Amon-Ra St. Brown catches a pass in a Lions preseason game in Pittsburgh.
The Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers have one of the NFL’s oldest rivalries, and in 2021, it will also become a sibling rivalry in a major way.
Off the field, Lions’ rookie wideout Amon-Ra St. Brown and Packers’ wideout Equanimeous St. Brown are brothers, but on it, they will get a chance to be rivals for the first time. Both members of the St. Brown family will square off under the lights on Monday Night Football when the Packers face the Lions in Week 2.
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For Amon-Ra, it will be a moment that is a long time coming given he explained he has never been to Lambeau Field in spite of his brother playing for Green Bay nor ever competed against his brother on the field in sports. He talked about that with the media in an interview posted to DetroitLions.com on Wednesday, September 15.
“It’s going to be fun, I’ve never played against my brother in anything, because when you’re younger, he’s three years older, that age difference is really a lot when you’re younger so being in our 20s now, it’s finally all evened out. It’s going to be fun to finally play against him, see him on the other sideline and talk to him after the game or even before the game,” he told the assembled media.
Equanimeous is currently on the Green Bay practice squad, so it’s not likely he will get run in the game barring a late-week call-up, meaning the younger St. Brown is the one who has a chance to show off the most on the field. It’s a chance he relishes given he grew up in his older brother’s shadow for so long.
“When I’m 14 and he’s 17, the maturity gap is much different. So now that I’m 21 and he’s 24, we’re (equals),” he said.
A reporter stopped St. Brown in his tracks. Doesn’t youth give him the edge in this scenario?
“Always right? Always have an edge, yeah,” St. Brown said with a laugh.
As for playful wagers between the sides, there is nothing yet, but the potential for something fun to be riding on the result of the game does exist.
“I’m going to have to call him this week and do something,” St. Brown said.
Regardless of how it ends, it will be fun to see two brothers who both made it to the NFL getting to connect over the game they love. That’s one of the things which makes the sport very special.
Amon-Ra St. Brown Adjusting Well Thanks to Preseason
As it relates to his own adjustment to the pro game, St. Brown is feeling good after one week of NFL action under his belt. The adjustment to the pro game is tough, but St. Brown thinks he benefitted in a big way from having some preseason action to rely on in 2021 to get up to speed.
“Having those three preseason games I feel like really helped,” he explained. “Especially for me being a rookie. The NFL is faster no matter preseason or regular season, so getting those three games under my belt really helped me so that when I got out there for the first game against the 49ers, it wasn’t like a surprise or anything. It was a little faster than preseason, but nothing where I was shocked or anything.”
In the game, St. Brown caught 2 passes for 23 yards. One of the passes came in the late stages as the Lions were trying to move down the field for a potential game-tying score. It wasn’t a huge game for St. Brown statistically, but it was just the kind of effort which could get him comfortable to make a bigger impact on the field in the future.
St. Brown’s College Stats and Highlights
One of the more underrated wideouts in the draft, St. Brown was part of a deep wideout class and may have been lost in the shuffle a bit in spite of some super talent. As a result, it’s clear he is going to fight and scrap for everything with his new team. During his career with the USC Trojans, St. Brown put up 2,270 yards and 16 scores, making him one of the more underrated yet productive wideouts in the draft. St. Brown also has 1 rushing touchdown and 107 total return yards to his credit. He hasn’t done that a lot, but could also factor in on special teams for the Lions if the team desires.
Here’s a look at some college highlights:
St. Brown clearly has the toughness physically and mentally needed to survive in the NFL. His brother’s bloodlines also help, so it will be fun to see the Lions’ game against the Packers turn into a family affair.
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