More than six months later, Amon-Ra St. Brown’s memories of the Detroit Lions ’ one-point loss to the Dallas Cowboys in December remained vivid. It wasn’t just the controversial call that nullified a potential game-winning 2-point conversion at the bizarre — and bitter — end. It was also his charged interactions with Cowboys cornerback Jourdan Lewis, the former Michigan football standout.
“He was talking crazy,” St. Brown said on “The Pivot Podcast, ” released in July. “Some (stuff) I’ve never heard.”
He may be confronted with it all again Sunday, when he and Lewis square off one more time at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
The St. Brown-Lewis tiff is among the juicy subplots in this latest Lions -Cowboys matchup, which is one of the most intriguing during Week 6 of the NFL slate.
Given the opportunity to deescalate his personal beef with St. Brown, Lewis instead chose to ratchet up the tension when he spoke with local Dallas media earlier this week.
“I just remember him going on a podcast trying to air me out,” Lewis told reporters. “We're going to play each other, so we're going to see each other and we're going to have a game together. We're going to see what's real and what's not."
Consider those fighting words — the type of incendiary rhetoric that can motivate St. Brown, who prefers to let his play speak for him.
More: Detroit Tigers magical playoff run resurrects what-ifs about Detroit Lions 2022 season
“Yeah, typically don’t get too involved,” he said Thursday. “I might say something back a little, but for the most part, it fires me up, gets me going. So, I love it.”
In the last meeting with the Cowboys, St. Brown collected six receptions for 90 yards and a touchdown. While matched up against Lewis, he was targeted twice, according to Pro Football Focus. St. Brown caught one of those passes for an 11-yard score near the end of regulation. Lewis, a Detroit Cass Tech alumnus, intervened on the other, causing a breakup.
“He’s a good player,” St. Brown said.
He’s also a bit of an instigator.
“There’s people who talk a lot,” Lions wideout Jameson Williams said after a question about Lewis was raised Thursday. “You've just got to handle it the way we handle it. Go out there and make a couple plays and maybe it will stop.”
But it never did for George Pickens last Sunday. After Lewis and his Cowboys teammates held Pittsburgh's No. 1 receiver to seven catches for 26 yards in a 20-17 victory, he ran towards Pickens at the end of the game and appeared to taunt him. Pickens then lashed out in a fit of frustration, grabbing Lewis’ facemask with such force that he threw him to the ground. That prompted Lewis to take a parting shot as he walked toward the locker room.
“Pittsburgh need a receiver,” Lewis said. “George Pickens is weak.”
Lewis can’t use that same adjective to describe St. Brown, a two-time Pro Bowler who has emerged as one of the best slot receivers in the league.
Conventional wisdom suggests St. Brown’s inspiring ascent from 2021 fourth-round pick to NFL star would help insulate him from the invective spewed by others during the heat of battle.
“Because I feel like as you get older in this league, you start to respect players more and what they do and the job we have to do each and every week,” St. Brown said.
But in December, St. Brown found out the hard way that was not the case when he went up against Lewis, the Cowboys’ feisty provocateur.
ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE BALL: Detroit Lions' Aaron Glenn: Penalties 'a double-edged sword' for aggressive CBs
So it goes, St. Brown said.
Yeah, Williams echoed, it is what is. But, as he explained, they’re not going to take the bait if Lewis tries to draw them offside with his trash talk.
“We don’t really trip out on guys who try to get you off your game,” Williams said. “I feel like I can speak for guys in the locker room when I say that.”
That includes St. Brown, a receiver who usually gets the last laugh after he’s been slighted.
Contact Rainer Sabin at rsabin@freepress.com . Follow him @RainerSabin .
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown ready for clash with trash-talking CB Jourdan Lewis
Local News
Comments / 0