St. Brown: Lions Will 'Redeem' Themselves in Primetime

Lions are looking to bounce back against Raiders.

Headed into their primetime matchup with the Raiders on Monday, the Lions, collectively, have one mission in mind: to bounce back from last Sunday.

In case you missed it, the Lions suffered their worst loss of the 2023 season a week ago against the Baltimore Ravens. 

Detroit was out-played by Lamar Jackson & Co. in every facet imaginable, suffering a 38-6 defeat in the Week 7 contest. Offensively, the Lions produced a season-low 337 yards. Meanwhile, on defense, the team permitted a season-high 503 yards.

“I think, as a whole, we didn’t play a good game, offensively, defensively," Lions receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown told reporters Friday. "Offensively, we just didn’t execute how we normally do. It’s kind of tough, offense has been playing well, defense has been playing well. It’s kind of hard to win in this league when both the offense and defense aren't playing that well. But, yeah, I mean, there was a lot of corrections that we made, or that we can learn from that tape. And, you know, (we) just (need to) move on, move forward and get better this week, and not repeat that.” 

To open up their Week 7 tilt with the Ravens, the Lions went three-and-out, gaining just 13 total yards, on three consecutive drives. They also failed to pick up a first down until midway through the second quarter. It was a disappointing performance for offensive coordinator Ben Johnson's unit, and one that he takes blame for, too. 

"Yeah, we all look in the mirror," Johnson said of placing blame upon himself for the team's anemic offensive output. "Clearly, I wish I had different plays in the opening script, ones that would’ve worked a little bit better, so. But, that’s about it. Felt good going into the game with the plan that we had, and had to deviate from that plan pretty early based on the situation, (but) probably shouldn't have. Felt like we had a good one, should’ve just stuck to our guns in how we wanted to call that game. But, a lot of good lessons to be learned from that game. I think we’re going to be a better crew for it.”

Prior to Detroit's lackluster performance against Baltimore, it had scored 20-or-more points in 14 straight games (dating back to last season). And even with the Lions' dud versus the Ravens taken into account, Johnson's unit is still averaging 24.9 points a game on the season (the eight-best mark in the NFL through seven weeks).

St. Brown, who accumulated 13 receptions and 102 yards in the loss to Baltimore, believes the offense has a solid shot to bounce back Monday night against Las Vegas.

“The work that we put in leading up to this, in OTAs, camp," St. Brown explained, for the reasons why he believes Detroit's offense will fare much better in Week 8. "You know, one bad game doesn’t define your whole season. But, we definitely got to bounce back from last week. I feel like that wasn’t us as an offense, and we know that. But, that’s what I like about this league. You always get another shot to kind of reset, and that’s what we can do this week.”

The Lions are set to play in their first Monday Night Football game since September 2021, when they faced the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. In the contest, Detroit suffered a 35-17 defeat to Aaron Rodgers & Co.

Meanwhile, Detroit hasn't played a home game on Monday night since the 2018 regular season opener against the N.Y. Jets. 

Since St. Brown entered the league in 2021, the Lions also haven't played a single home game in primetime. The third-year receiver is excited for the opportunity to do so this upcoming Monday.

"I’m excited to see the fans, how it’s going to be rockin’," St. Brown commented. "But, to kind of redeem yourself on primetime is huge. It’s nice, but at the end of the day, it’s just another game for us, no matter if it’s primetime or Sunday at 1 (p.m.). But, shoot, everyone’s going to be watching, and we’ve got to put our best stuff on tape."