The 2021 draft class is a pillar of the current foundation of the Detroit Lions. Penei Sewell, Alim McNeil and Derrick Barnes are three players to come out of the first draft class authored by general manager Brad Holmes and head coach Dan Campbell. But the most impactful pick may have come in the fourth round when they selected Amon-Ra St. Brown.
Coming out of USC, St. Brown’s rise to stardom has been one of the most exciting parts of the Lions’ renaissance. But while he’s now happy to be in Detroit, that wasn’t always the case.
Amon-Ra St. Brown Admits He Didn't Want to Land In Detroit
St. Brown recalled his draft day slide when he appeared on an episode of Kevin Hart’s “Cold As Balls” YouTube show. The show, which takes place with Hart and his guest in separate cold tubs, featured St. Brown discussing how he didn't want to be drafted by the Lions and felt dread when they called him in the fourth round.
"I love the city, but at the time I was like, 'F---, I'm going to Detroit," St. Brown told Hart.
"Yeah it's tough," Hart replied. "Cause there's no shot at Detroit. You gotta learn Detroit to love Detroit."
St. Brown's desire to go somewhere else in the draft was chronicled last spring when he told ESPN's Eric Woodyard he wanted to be drafted by the Green Bay Packers to play with his brother, Equanimeous. While the Packers didn't happen, neither did St. Brown's other desire to play anywhere else but Detroit.
“When it got to Day 3, I was already mad,” St. Brown said. “I even told my brother, ‘If there’s one team I don’t want to go to, that’s the Lions. Just, please, I don’t want to go to the Lions.’ [My brother] was on the Packers at the time and I was like, ‘I want to play with him.’”
While St. Brown wanted to play for Green Bay, the feelings weren’t mutual. The Packers made three selections including fellow wide receiver Amari Rodgers with the 85th overall pick before St. Brown was selected by the Lions with the 112th pick, setting off another comical reaction.
“Sure enough, I check my phone and it’s 3-1-3, Detroit,” St. Brown said. “I’m like ‘No way.’ I was happy, but I was unhappy at the same time because I didn’t want to come here.”
Safe to say, Detroit wound up being a great landing spot for St. Brown. In four years with the Lions, St. Brown has caught 430 passes including over 100 balls in each of the past three seasons. The 25-year-old also made the Pro Bowl in each of the past three seasons and helped the Lions advance to the NFC Championship Game in 2023 and earn the top seed in the NFC in 2024.
St. Brown has made headlines with his ability to recite all 16 receivers taken ahead of him in the 2021 draft. His fondness for the Packers has also dissolved with time, as he wore a “Green Bay Sucks” shirt ahead of the Lions’ matchup at Lambeau Field last October. But things have worked out for the best and St. Brown believes that his initial feelings only helped him land where he is now.
“Looking back on it, it’s [for] the best,” St. Brown said last year. “I don’t think there’s another team where I could have done what I’ve done here with the people that are around me. The coaches, my teammates, the fans, the city. Just the whole story of how everything has been going so far, I would pay for this if I could, to have this whole thing happen again, because it’s a perfect story.”