Getty Amon-Ra St. Brown on the field for the Lions in 2021 vs. Arizona.
The Detroit Lions managed to get a great season on the field from their young players, and it is fitting that some of their brightest stars managed to be their draft picks.
That fact points to the notion that the Lions will be primed to have a major season in 2022 with the continued development of their young stars, and it was a push that took place late in 2021 that led to this point for the Lions.
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NFL analyst and draft expert Daniel Jeremiah was one of the first to realize the team was building something special, and that shows in the fact that two of Detroit’s rookie players cracked his final top 25 list for all rookies during the 2021 season. Jeremiah posted the list on NFL.com.
Making an appearance on the list are tackle Penei Sewell, who placed 11th on the list, and wideout Amon-Ra St. Brown who checked in at 21. Sewell was first up, and just missing out on a top 10 ranking. As Jeremiah explained, what he was able to do at both right tackle and left tackle was impressive given the fact that he only just turned 21 years old during the season.
While he was a bit further down the list, St. Brown worked his way into everyone’s consciousness with a huge finish to the season. As Jeremiah says, he loves St. Brown’s competitiveness as well as his play strength.
Obviously, the Lions hope they have the foundation for some greatness on the offensive side with these two rookies. After a strong finish to the year, that is looking to be the case.
St. Brown Enjoyed Historic Finish to 2021-22 Season
St. Brown left no doubt about his future with the performance in the season-finale against the Packers. The rookie not only shattered Roy Williams’ franchise record for receiving yards in a season by a first-year player in the game, he also find a way into the end zone and collected 109 yards on the day. In addition to the touchdown, St. Brown looked like a major weapon most of the afternoon for the Lions catching and running with the ball.
St. Brown has been on fire for the Lions down the stretch, and the fact he finished with 912 receiving yard and 5 touchdowns will simply springboard him moving forward into 2022. The Lions have seen St. Brown come into his own with big plays, and he has looked like a future dynamo in waiting for the team’s offense.
Most understand that St. Brown doesn’t show any signs of slowing down, and that’s great for the Lions in 2022.
Sewell Enjoyed Solid Rookie Season
To say that the 2021-22 season was a strong start for Sewell is more than a bit of an understatement. The offensive tackle excelled no matter where he was playing, and managed to catch the eye of sites like Pro Football Focus multiple times. Sewell was one of the top-graded tackles in the league as a rookie, and routinely opened eyes for his ability to keep whomever was playing quarterback for the Lions upright as well as helping the running game succeed. Sewell did not crack the Pro Bowl for his rookie work, but the fact he was stable on the field should be enough of a plus for the Lions moving forward. As a whole, Sewell started 16 total games for the Lions and was a mainstay up front for the team. Perhaps the signature moment for Sewell is when he refused to back down from Aaron Donald in a game:
It’s clear Sewell and the Lions are in good shape in the near future.
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