St. Brown Feels Rematch With Bucs Will Be 'Completely Different Game'
On Sunday at Ford Field, the Lions will square off with the Buccaneers in the divisional round of the NFL postseason.
In the first meeting between the former NFC Central rivals (in Week 6), Detroit went into Raymond James Stadium and soundly beat Tampa Bay, 20-6.
Just because the Lions took care of business in that early-season matchup, it doesn’t mean it will be as easy for Dan Campbell’s team to knock off the Buccaneers a second time.
To Detroit receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, Tampa Bay, which is coming off a wild-card round playoff win over the Eagles, is a vastly different team now.
“You know, I think, it was so early in the season when we played them. I mean, we’ve grown a lot as a team, as an offense. They’ve grown a lot as a team,” St. Brown told reporters Thursday. “Shoot, just watching their game live on TV, when they played the Eagles, I mean, it looked like they were flying around on defense. On offense, it looked like they were playing confident, receivers were making plays. Baker (Mayfield) was playing well. So, you can definitely tell it’s a completely different team from when we played them.
“So, we’ve gotta be ready. It’s hard to beat a team twice in this league. We know that. But, I think it’s gonna be a completely different game this time around than it was the first time. So, I’m excited.”
St. Brown delivered a solid performance in Detroit’s first meeting with the Buccaneers. He amassed 12 catches for 124 yards and a touchdown.
Yet, the Lions weren’t equipped with the same roster on that Sunday in mid-October. Detroit was without both left guard Jonah Jackson and running back Jahmyr Gibbs, and Gibbs’ backfield counterpart David Montgomery exited the contest prematurely with a rib injury in the first half.
Subsequently, the Lions struggled to get the ground game going, and only produced 40 total rushing yards. St. Brown believes the team’s run game woes played a role in how the early-season game went for him.
“I think that’s part of it,” the third-year receiver said, when asked about the lack of a run game having an impact on his Week 6 stat line. “We couldn’t really get the running game going, so they stopped the run pretty well that game. So, we had to throw it, and we threw it pretty well. I had a pretty good game. But, it was, we couldn’t run it. They had a pretty good plan for us run-wise. So, we had to just throw. We were stuck in some third-and-long's and what not, (some) second-and-long's. So, yeah, it was one of those types of games.”
St. Brown and Detroit are now headed into their second playoff game at Ford Field. The Lions faithful produced an electric atmosphere in the team’s win a week ago against Matthew Stafford and the L.A. Rams. And, St. Brown expects the same from the rabid fanbase this Sunday.
“The environment last Sunday was crazy,” St. Brown commented. “I couldn’t have imagined anything better. It was the best game I’ve ever been a part of as a player, atmosphere-wise. So, my challenge to the fans is to be even better this week. I know they will be. They’ve been great all year. But, I’m excited. And, the first time we played at Tampa, they showed out great that time, too. But, this time it’s going to be at home. I know Ford Field is going to be rockin’ again, so I can’t wait.”
The All-Pro receiver has felt the love from the Lions fanbase all season long. And, perhaps no one has shown more support for Detroit’s No. 1 receiver than Larry Benjamin, a Detroit resident who’s currently in hospice care with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Benjamin, a longtime Lions fan, dyed his hair blue, just like the receiver, prior to the start of the postseason.
“It’s awesome,” St. Brown said of the now viral story. “I saw it. Someone sent it to me, one of my friends, and a lot of people ended up sending it to me. It’s just awesome to see. It’s humbling as a player to know you can touch other people’s lives just by playing a sport and being who I am. So, it’s awesome to see. I’m actually going to reach out to them tomorrow if I can, see what I can do. But, it’s definitely cool to see.”
