Star Lions WR confident in depth pieces to help fill the Jameson Williams void

ALLEN PARK -- Amon-Ra St. Brown, much like the Detroit Lions coaches, is pointing to the team’s newfound wide receiver depth as reasons to remain confident in their ability to make big plays.

And with Jameson Williams accepting his two-game suspension ahead of this weekend’s game against the Tennessee Titans, the Lions will have to count on that depth much sooner than later. Jameson Williams will miss Detroit’s game against the Titans and then the Green Bay Packers due to the suspension.

The Lions will need more from Kalif Raymond and Tim Patrick, with opportunities for Allen Robinson and Isaiah Williams to contribute.

“Obviously, you miss his explosive ability and speed, so we’re definitely going to miss him on Sunday, but we got guys that feel like in our room that can step right in and not replace him, bring their own version of what Jameson can do,” St. Brown said. “Leaf can run. Leaf can basically do everything in the offense. He’s our do-it-all type guy. A lot of it is on him this week. But Leaf is smart. He can handle it all. I’m excited to see what the other guys can do.

“It’s awesome (having Robinson). He’s been awesome. A great teammate. Willing to learn. Willing to help us young guys -- I say, ‘Yeah, I’m in my fourth year.’ But he’s seen a lot of stuff. It’s been awesome having him around. I’m excited to see him go out there and go to work. I remember watching him play when I was a kid when he was on the Jaguars. He’s played plenty of ball, made a bunch of plays.”

St. Brown always plays a major role in Detroit’s offense and is one of the key pieces that make this unit go. The Sun God notched his second 100-yard game of the season in Minnesota, catching eight balls for 112 yards and one touchdown. St. Brown has scored in four straight games, too, and he’s up to 39 catches for 401 yards and four touchdowns on the season.

Related: Jameson Williams accepts 2-game suspension despite not understanding violation

Related: Lions not overlooking struggling Titans: ‘We were in Tennessee’s shoes before’

Raymond had one of his best games of the year last week, earning praise for his lethal releases along the way. He caught three passes on four targets for 39 yards and one touchdown, all on one drive to lift the offense down the field.

And Patrick has developed into one of Jared Goff’s trusty deep threats for a couple of weeks now, deserving love for his physical style of play and some clutch blocks in the win over the Minnesota Vikings. The 6-foot-4 veteran wideout has seven receptions for 145 yards across the last three games, with some impressive contested grabs along the way.

“Well, he’s another guy that, along the same lines as Saint, you know what you’re getting each and every day,” Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson said of Raymond. “He comes in with a great attitude and he’s willing to do whatever it takes. If you told him, ‘Hey, you’re going to have 10 snaps this week and they’re all run blocking,’ he’s going to attack that with a vigor, and he just loves playing football and being out on the field for his teammates.

“And so, when you combine that mentality along with – he’s got probably the best press releases on the team because of how small and shifty he is, guys can’t keep up with his quickness, he’s a threat in man-to-man, and then his run after catch is that of what you would expect from a punt returner.”

However, the Lions could put more on Robinson and Isaiah Williams’ plate as they looked to fill the holes left by Jameson Williams’ two-game suspension. Robinson is an established veteran who took a spot on his hometown team’s practice squad. And Isaiah Williams made the roster out of training camp as an undrafted rookie, which is no easy task on a loaded Super Bowl contender’s roster.

Johnson said Isaiah Williams has been one of those players who “pops every week on scout team,” adding he’s won scout team player of the week multiple times for helping his teammates prepare. He said that the trust is going up, and you can see the speed and shiftiness carrying over from the preseason.

Dan Campbell, the team’s head coach, also marveled at Robinson’s veteran presence and how he approaches the job at practice and in the building day in and day out.

“... I mean, we just went through the walkthrough; I mean, he’s going to take on a heavy load here, too,” Campbell said. “Talk about a pro, man. I mean, he’s locked in. Everything we just went through, I mean, it’s meticulous, which fires you up.

“So, we’re going to be good here.”

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