Amon-Ra St. Brown gives outlook on Lions that will let fans breathe a sigh of relief
Posted September 6, 2025
Amon-Ra St. Brown is one of the Detroit Lions' captains for this season once again, and for good reason. He was not only the team's leading receiver in an explosive offense led by Jared Goff, but he has become a huge voice for the team and a big piece of their gritty identity.
The oft-reliable and even keeled fifth year star is looking to lead the Lions to another postseason berth where, this time, they're able to get through the Divisional Round and NFC Championship Game to reach the Super Bowl. That's the ultimate goal of any squad of the Lions' caliber and talent.
St. Brown knows this all too well, and understands that the pressure is somewhat on for Detroit this season in a tightly contested NFC North and NFC, generally. However, as St. Brown noted to reporters ahead of Week 1 against the Green Bay Packers, the Lions aren't going to be completely cooked if they can't get it done this year.
“This year, we’re like, it’s almost ‘all or nothing’ even though in reality, our nucleus will probably still be here next year and we’ll probably have a pretty good team next year," St. Brown told a scrum of reporters about the teams' expectations in 2025, per a video shared by ESPN reporter Eric Woodyard.
St. Brown states the obvious about great position for Lions
St. Brown knows that the team has a lot of work to do in order for the nucleus that he's referring to to remain in the fold. Extensions for Aidan Hutchinson, Brian Branch, Jameson Williams, and others are in order ahead of the 2026 season, while free agents like Alex Anzalone are hitting the market once the 2025 season is wrapped up.
So, if the team isn't able to get something done this year, there's a possibility they lose a ton of the core they've worked hard to keep in the fold with their buy in by next season. However, the Lions have two things on their side as it pertains to these future negotiations: a winning culture, and an undeniable team chemistry.
Both factors are likely to contribute to the extensions of players like Hutchinson and Williams getting done, considering that both players were drafted by the team and invested in despite injury woes or other career setbacks. The winning is just a result of that investment from the team and its players, and the culture being sustained by head coach Dan Campbell.
So, yes, a Super Bowl should be the goal for this core in 2025. Worst case scenario, though, is that the Lions just run it back again with the same talented roster they have now, next year.
BREAKING NEWS: Deck Stacks Against Spencer Rattler Ahead of Season Debut
Kellen Moore ruled Trevor Penning out for the New Orleans Saints season opener against the Arizona Cardinals. This has to feel all too familiar for Spencer Rattler. One piece of Rattler's offensive line is already out of the starting lineup in his first start of the season. The loss isn't crippling, but it does feel like the second year player can't catch a break.
The constant in the six games Rattler started as a rookie, and the one constant throughout that time was injuries tore apart his supporting cast. He had multiple injuries in front of him on the offensive line, the top receivers out and an injured Alvin Kamara to finish the year. It won't be to that degree on Sunday, but it's hard to not think back to 2024 when hearing Penning will miss the upcoming game.
Ironically, Penning was one of the players who didn't miss any time. He suffered a turf toe injury during the first preseason game. It's been nearly a month since he suffered the injury, so you'd think Penning should be close to returning. He didn't practice this week, but we'll monitor if he sees any improvement next week.
Saints always had a contingency plan for Trevor Penning getting injured
You don’t want to see players get hurt, but teams are more equipped to deal with injuries at certain positions. Guard is one of those positions for New Orleans due to signing Dillon Radunz in the offseason.
Radunz always felt like a contingency plan around Penning’s transition to guard not working out. Though it was optimism around Penning’s skillset being better suited for the interior, Radunz is proven at guard. Many thought there was a chance he would be the starter before the Saints confirmed they were trying Penning at guard.
You hate to see Rattler start another game without his entire offensive line, but having a true starting caliber player as a replacement makes it easier to manage. When he stepped in at guard, Radunz's play inspired confidence.
