Obviously, it’s bit of a guessing game on how the Detroit Lions offense will look under new offensive coordinator John Morton. Compared to former offensive coordinator, Ben Johnson, it could look a lot different. Or it could look somewhat similar. It’s obviously a waiting game filled with a whole lot of guessing and anticipation.

One thing that will remain constant in the Detroit Lions offense is the presence of wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown. Entering his 5th season in the NFL, he’s been the most consistent piece to the Lions organization during that time.

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Through four seasons, he’s totaled 470 receptions for 4,851 yards and 33 touchdowns. On a 17-game average (per Pro Football Reference), St. Brown averages 111 receptions for 1,250 yards and 9 touchdowns per season. Despite the emergence of players such as Jameson Williams, Jahmyr Gibbs and Sam LaPorta, it hasn’t slowed Amon-Ra down.

Much of what makes Amon-Ra so dominant and consistent is his ability to win anywhere and everywhere on the field. Primarily aligned out wide or in the slot, there was strong production from either alignment in 2024.

According to NextGenStats, St. Brown ran 240 routes from the slot with 39 receptions for 441 yards and five touchdowns. He was targeted 56 times out of the slot. However, he ran 252 routes from a wide alignment. This led to 67 receptions for 740 yards and five touchdowns. He was targeted 75 times from a wide alignment and this resulted in a 89.3% catch percentage.

It’s clear after the 2024 season that St. Brown is more than just a slot merchant as some like to label him. Let’s dive into the film to look more into what makes St. Brown successful from wide alignments.

As I reviewed the tape from last season, one of my big takeaways is how the Lions offense somewhat manipulated defenses by condensing their formations. The play above gives a great snapshot of that prior to the snap.

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At the top of the screen, you’ll see Amon-Ra St. Brown aligned on the ball and about two yards from the top of the numbers. From there, you can see that the Lions are aligned in a 2×2 set for their offensive formation.

Once the ball is snapped, you’ll see St. Brown work through some initial contact, but he manages to get inside leverage on the cornerback. As he threatens vertically, he makes it appear as if he’s going to continue vertically on his route. However, he quickly breaks his route to the middle of the field and Jared Goff finds him for a big completion.

Moving onto the next play, we’ll see a similar formation as the previous play with the Lions coming out in a 2×2 set. However, rather than it being condensed, the receivers are wider. As you can see, St. Brown is aligned at the top of the screen and is about a yard or so from the bottom of the numbers.

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Once the ball is snapped, you’ll see St. Brown reading the cornerback. As the cornerback begins to quickly bail, he breaks his route to the middle of the field, and he slips underneath the linebackers.

While St. Brown begins to break towards the middle of the field, you’ll see tight end Sam LaPorta begin to run vertically up the seam. As he carries vertically, St. Brown runs underneath, and this would be labeled as a Dagger concept. From there, Jared Goff finds him with ease and it leads to a nice completion.

Lastly, I want to focus on an easy pitch-and-catch between Jared Goff and Amon-Ra St. Brown from the Colts game last season. On the play above, the Lions come out in another 2×2 set with St. Brown aligned at the top of the screen.

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This time, St. Brown is right at the bottom of the numbers. With a safety buzzed down, the expected coverage prior to the snap could be Cover 1, Cover 3 or potentially some type of inverted Cover 4 look from the Colts defense. Once the ball is snapped, it appears to be some variation of Cover 3 from the Colts.

On the route, you can see St. Brown work inside and then break back towards the sideline on what appears to be a corner route. Despite the cornerback being over the top of the route, there’s plenty of separation due to the fluidity and explosiveness from St. Brown on his route. This gives Goff plenty of room to make a clean pass and it ultimately leads to a first down.

Overall, it’s certainly a joy to watch Amon-Ra St. Brown on a weekly basis. But it’s no secret that he’s one of the most consistent playmakers in the NFL. We all know the list of receivers that were drafted prior to him in the 2021 NFL Draft but there’s been a misconception on how he’s utilized in the Lions offense on a weekly basis.

As the data and film indicate, St. Brown is a complete receiver who can win anywhere on the field. Regardless of alignment or route being ran, there are no limitations within his game. I’d expect the production and usage to continue for him in the Detroit Lions offense, regardless of who is calling the plays.

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This article originally appeared on Lions Wire: Lions Data and Film: Amon-Ra St. Brown more than just a slot merchant