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Detroit Lions, WR Amon-Ra St. Brown agree to four-year, $120 million extension
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- Detroit Lions, WR Amon-Ra St. Brown agree to four-year, $120 million extension
Amon-Ra St. Brown was the steal of the 2021 NFL draft, he has improved statistically every season and now he'll be a Detroit Lions receiver for the foreseeable future.
St. Brown reportedly signed a four-year contract extension worth more than $120 million with the Lions on Tuesday that makes him the highest-paid receiver in football in average annual value. He will earn $77 million guaranteed, according to an NFL official with direct knowledge of the contract.
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The official spoke to USA TODAY Sports on the condition of anonymity because the extension has not been finalized.
Other top receiver contracts per year: Tyreek Hill ($30 million), Davante Adams ($28 million), Cooper Kupp ($26.7 million) Mike Evans ($26 million) and A.J. Brown ($25 million).
St. Brown, entering the final year of his rookie contract, is scheduled to make $3.366 million this season. His new deal takes him through the 2028 season.
A fourth-round pick out of USC in 2021, St. Brown has been one of the Lions' most dependable players since he landed in Detroit.
He set a franchise rookie record with 90 receptions in 2021 and earned first-team All-Pro honors last season with 119 catches and 1,515 yards. In three seasons, he has 315 receptions – third most by any player through their first three years in NFL history – 3,588 yards and 28 touchdowns.
Detroit Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown celebrates the 31-23 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFC divisional round at Ford Field in Detroit on Sunday, Jan. 21, 2024.
The Lions have prioritized re-signing some of their young nucleus this offseason, and Lions coach Dan Campbell has pointed to St. Brown as the type of player he wants in his program.
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"The things that he does every day in practice and every game show up all the time," Campbell said in January. "That's what a pro is and it's why he's a pro. I mean, it's — you can write down everything that he's going to do and he'll do it.
"It's the same thing, and there's nothing easy about what he does. But for him, it's routine and it's why he's a great player. It's consistency. You know exactly what you're going to get every time, so it's easy when you have a guy like him on your team. It's easy to gameplan with him what you can do because you know what you're going to get."
One of the Lions' hardest workers and fiercest competitors, St. Brown has kept a list of all 16 receivers taken before him in the 2021 draft that he refers to daily in-season for motivation.
Three receivers went in the top-10 that season, Ja'Marr Chase (No. 5), Jaylen Waddle (No. 6) and DeVonta Smith (No. 10), and two more went in the first round.
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Chase, Waddle and Smith are the only pass catchers from the draft with even half as many catches as St. Brown, who slipped to Day 3 because of size and speed concerns.
"He does it all," CBS analyst and former Lions receiver Nate Burleson said at the Super Bowl. "Not only is he dynamic, he blocks his butt off. He just adds a spark. Really unique talent. He's as good as any No. 1 wide receiver, but he brings that energy that you need."
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Amon-Ra St. Brown, Lions agree to $120 million contract extension
