Ranking the Packers (No. 39): Equanimeous St. Brown

Equanimeous Tristan Imhotep J. St. Brown spent last season on injured reserve, taking away a chance to build upon a solid rookie year.

Author:
Bill Huber
Publish date:
Jul 18, 2020 10:07 PM EDT

GREEN BAY, Wis. – In a tradition that stretches more than a decade, here is our annual ranking of the 90 players on the Green Bay Packers’ roster. This isn’t merely a look at the best players. Rather, it’s a formula that combines talent, salary, importance of the position, depth at the position and, for young players, draft positioning. More than the ranking, we hope you learn a little something about every player on the roster.

No. 39: WR Equanimeous St. Brown (6-5, 214, third season, Notre Dame)

St. Brown suffered an ankle injury in the preseason and spent the year on injured reserve, robbing the talented receiver the chance to build on a solid rookie season. Given the play of the receiver corps, it could have used his services.

St. Brown, who surprisingly slid into the sixth round of the 2018 draft despite his blend of size and speed (4.48 in the 40), caught 21 passes for 328 yards and zero touchdowns as a rookie. He saved his best for last, with five catches for 94 yards against the Jets. While he caught only 61.7 percent of targeted passes, he had zero drops and finished third on the team with 1.31 yards per route – better than Marquez Valdes-Scantling’s 1.22 and Randall Cobb’s 1.13.

“I’m excited about getting EQ back from injury and seeing how he feels,” quarterback Aaron Rodgers said during an offseason conference call. “He really made some great strides his rookie year, especially towards the end of the season making plays for us and just kind of growing each week. He’s got a great approach to the game. It will be fun to see him healthy.”

Equanimeous Tristan Imhotep J. St. Brown has an unusual name and an unusual story.

He is the son of John Brown, a three-time Mr. World and two-time Mr. Universe bodybuilder. St. Brown is one of three children; his younger brothers are named after Egyptian gods. With a German mother, they went to school in Germany and France to be immersed in other languages. Their mother, Miriam, is from Germany. They met in Germany at an international fitness show. In a story by ESPN.com, Brown said he wanted to settle down and have athletic children. What caught his attention? Her big toes, big knees and big IQ.

“People laugh at me, and she probably gets a little mad,” Brown said. “I met her and looked at her big toe. I thought, wow, she has big toes, big knees and she's tall. ... She's also very smart. That's the big thing, very smart. And I knew she would give me the kids I wanted.”

While John Brown was a legendary weightlifter, their three children became receivers, with Osiris at Stanford and Amon-Ra a star at USC.

Why he’s got a chance: Big, fast and sure-handed never go out of style. And while St. Brown might not play to that 4.48 speed, he’s still got a tremendous skill-set. The Packers, of course, made only one noteworthy move at receiver during the offseason with the signing of Devin Funchess. Funchess, however, is far from a sure thing, so the door is open for St. Brown to claim a big role in the offense.