The Detroit Lions sadly concluded their remarkable season. However, it is now the moment to focus on the future. In the upcoming two weeks, MLive will provide evaluations for every position group of the team. Today: Receivers and Tight Ends. Earlier: Quarterback | Running back | Offensive Line
WIDE RECEIVER / TIGHT END
Starting players: Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams (WR), Sam LaPorta (TE)
Reserves: Wide receivers: Tim Patrick, Kalif Raymond, Allen Robinson, Isaiah Williams, and Tom Kennedy. Tight ends: Shane Zylstra and Brock Wright.
Key Stats: The Detroit Lions were the sole NFL team this season with two wide receivers exceeding 1,000 yards. Amon-Ra St. Brown achieved 1,263 yards — fifth among receivers — while Jameson Williams logged 1,001, marking his first time hitting this milestone in his early career.
St. Brown, who received another first-team All-Pro nod, concluded the season with 115 catches — the second-most in the league — and 12 touchdowns, placing him third. The ex-USC star also entered NFL history, as he became only the third player to achieve 115 or more receptions and over 10 touchdowns in back-to-back seasons. Williams additionally achieved a career-best seven touchdowns.
Tight end Sam LaPorta was unable to match his rookie-year performance, as injuries like hamstring, ankle, and AC joint sprains affected his season. He participated in 71 fewer snaps yet ended up with 726 receiving yards, placing sixth among tight ends, and scored seven touchdowns, which tied for fourth at the position.
St. Brown, Williams, and LaPorta played crucial roles in assisting Jared Goff to throw for 4,629 yards this season, ranking second among all quarterbacks.
Kory’s Mark: A
Analysis: Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams were anticipated to perform well this season, and judging by their output, it’s fair to conclude they lived up to those expectations — despite Williams sitting out two games because of a performance-enhancing drug violation.
The pair became the first set of Lions receivers to achieve 1,000-yard seasons since Golden Tate and Marvin Jones did in 2017. They also became only the second duo of Lions teammates to achieve 1,000 receiving yards and seven touchdowns in a single season.
And if you believed that the franchise marks ended there, you are wrong.
At the conclusion of the season, St. Brown had 433 catches and 33 touchdowns, placing him sixth and fourth, respectively, on the Lions’ all-time records.
Ending his fourth season on those lists isn’t just good — it’s actually pretty amazing. A significant portion of St. Brown’s ongoing success arises from the rapport he has built with Lions quarterback Jared Goff.
This season, the connection between the quarterback and wide receiver generated an incredible statistic: St. Brown made 31 passes in a row. In November, Lions head coach Dan Campbell discussed their bond as he and Goff lauded St. Brown for contributing to the success of their partnership.
“He just kept on growing, and at some point it’s like, ‘We need to get this guy the ball.’” In truth, Goff was consistently stating, ‘This player is going to be impressive.’ “This guy has the potential to win,” Campbell remarked regarding St. Brown’s initial performances in 2021. “Thus, he realized that early on.” It was then a matter of providing him with chances as he kept developing, and once that bond began, it has remained constant.
“We’re not even discussing all the contributions in the passing game…this player does everything, and we consider ourselves lucky to have him.”
Now, we shouldn’t exclude Williams, Sam LaPorta, or even newcomer Tim Patrick from the discussion— all three had important contributions.
Williams’ two-game suspension was not ideal, yet it did not hinder the Lions’ offense during his absence. This season allowed him to achieve personal bests, mainly because of his reliability, and he demonstrated to be a formidable option for Goff when needed. Williams also became part of Cloyce Box as the sole players in franchise history to achieve at least five touchdown receptions of over 40 yards in a season.
To provide some context, Box achieved this milestone last in 1952 — 72 years back.
Regarding LaPorta, his performance didn’t quite match the wow factor of his rookie year, yet, as noted previously, the output was still present. He became a dependable option in short-yardage scenarios, particularly in the red zone.
LaPorta achieved a milestone in NFL history by being the first tight end to accumulate 600 receiving yards and six or more touchdowns in both of his initial two seasons. He teamed up with Rob Gronkowski, Jimmy Graham, and Mike Ditka as the sole tight ends in league history to achieve over 1,500 receiving yards and more than 15 receiving touchdowns during their first two seasons.
In simple terms, the online discussions regarding LaPorta’s supposed “off year” have been significantly overstated. His chemistry at Goff wasn’t always perfect this season, yet he remained a crucial element of the Lions offense’s remarkable campaign.
Patrick signed with the Lions after leaving the Denver Broncos and faced the challenging responsibility of taking on the third-receiver position that was left open by Josh Reynolds’ transfer to, indeed, Denver.
He couldn’t match Reynolds’ output, but as the season went on, Patrick demonstrated to be a dependable and trustworthy option for Goff. It will be intriguing to find out if Detroit re-signs him, ensuring consistency in the position and giving him a complete training camp alongside Goff.
One overlooked player from this Lions receiving group was Kalif Raymond. Although he participated in just 12 games, he topped the NFL in punt return yards (413) and scored a touchdown, achieving second-team All-Pro recognition.
St. Brown, Williams, Raymond, and LaPorta are highly likely to come back next season due to their performance. Additionally, the Lions might consider making changes at wide receiver and tight end this offseason.