Lions Make Historic Amon-Ra St. Brown Announcement
The Detroit Lions are riding high after their definitive win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Ford Field on Sunday, October 19, which ended in a 24-9 final score. Now, the Lions have a record of 5-2 going into their bye week and are being talked about as one of the top teams in the NFL.
Looking at NFL Week 8 Power Rankings, ESPN has the Lions at No. 1, and so does NFL’s official website. In a piece published on Tuesday, October 21, Eric Edholm of the NFL’s site says of the Lions, “Jared Goff‘s pick before halftime helped gift the Buccaneers points, but the Lions’ offense responded with a touchdown on its first drive of the third quarter and the defense played incredibly well all night, especially considering the circumstances.”
He adds, “The Lions might have taken the Chiefs’ best punch in Week 6, but they took out their frustrations on a good Bucs team that they might see again in January.”
So, experts agree that the Detroit Lions are on top. As it turns out, wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown made some history during Sunday’s game, and the Lions gave him the spotlight during the bye week.
Detroit Lions Wide Receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown Makes History
On Tuesday, October 21, the Lions shared a post on X and their other socials saying, “Primetime players make primetime plays,” and noting that St. Brown was the first player in franchise history to have touchdown receptions in four-straight Monday Night Football games. That’s a huge accomplishment, and it’s fantastic to see him get some recognition.
Running back Jahmyr Gibbs, of course, also had a massive game. He clocked 218 yards and two rushing touchdowns, according to ESPN. The Lions are now 13-4 following a loss since the start of the 2022 season, which is the second-best record in NFL over that timespan after the Kansas City Chiefs (11-2), according to ESPN Research.
“Gibbs broke free up the middle for the longest run of his NFL career with a 78-yard touchdown with 5:51 left in the first half,” Eric Woodyard of ESPN said in a Tuesday, October 21 story. “Gibbs’ top speed was 22.2 mph, the fastest rushing TD by an offensive ball carrier this season, per Next Gen Stats. He is the only player over the past three seasons to reach 22 mph on a rushing touchdown, and he has done it twice now, including on a 70-yard touchdown versus the Titans in 2024.”
Detroit Lions at the Top (Again)
We already talked about the Lions topping ESPN and the NFL’s Week 8 Power Rankings. Well, Fox Sports also has the Lions at No. 1. In a piece out Tuesday, October 21, Ralph Vacchiano says of the Lions, “The Lions sure bounced back nicely from their loss in Kansas City with a win over the Bucs. They aren’t perfect, but they can do it all and may be the most complete team in the NFL.”
Alternative Fix Sports also has the Lions at No. 1 on their power rankings, with Amber Reed noting, “the secondary was thin, injuries were mounting — but the Lions responded anyway.”
So, the Lions are the team to beat. Their next game is against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, November 2.
Lions Lose Veteran Linebacker Immediately After He Returns From Injury
The Detroit Lions waited three weeks to get veteran linebacker Zach Cunningham back after a serious injury, but now he will be gone for at least a month — and potentially the entire season.
The team placed Cunningham on injured reserve after suffering a hamstring injury in last week’s win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Cunningham had just returned from a three-week absence for another hamstring injury, and the latest development will put his season in doubt.
Lions Lose Key Depth
Cunningham had been knocked out of last weekend’s 24-9 win over the conference-leading Buccaneers, ruled out to return with a hamstring injury. As Jeff Risdon of USA Today’s Lions Wire noted, the injury will take a key special teams and situational defender from the roster.
“There is no indication if Cunningham, who plays primarily on special teams but has also worked in short-yardage and red zone packages throughout the season, will be able to return in 2025,” Risdon wrote. “The Lions facility is closed to and staff are off until next week. For the year, the 30-year-old has seven tackles and one TFL.”
Cunningham came to the Lions as a free agent this offseason, adding a veteran presence to the linebacking corps. The 30-year-old has appeared in 106 games with 86 starts in his career, making 716 total tackles.
He had a light role in Detroit this season, appearing in four games with seven total tackles.
Backups Come Through in the Secondary
The Lions have already taken a number of hits to their defense, especially in the secondary where the team has already lost several cornerbacks to injury and had safety Brian Branch serve a one-game suspension for sparking a skirmish at the end of the team’s loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.
The team utilized what head coach Dan Campbell called its “Who?” secondary against the Buccaneers, holding the dangerous offense to just nine points.
“I knew we were going to challenge them and do more than we did last week,” Campbell said, via The Associated Press. “But that’s a good quarterback over there, and they’ve been playing good football. I had confidence, but nine points?”
The Lions relied heavily on reserves Rock Ya-Sin, Nick Whiteside, Arthur Maulet, Erick Hallett, and Thomas Harper against the Buccaneers. NFL.com reporter Kevin Patra noted that the collection of backups played “with their hair on fire” against the Buccaneers, taking an aggressive approach that left quarterback Baker Mayfield befuddled.
Campbell said he called on the group to take on an aggressive approach and they delivered, not getting overcome by the challenge of facing one of the NFL’s top teams in primetime.
“That’s what’s expected here,” Campbell said. “I’ve said it before, you get in there, you don’t have to be perfect, you just challenge and you compete, and we will help you and the guys around you will help you.
“I love the fact the game didn’t seem too big for those guys. That was Harper’s and Hallett’s first start. I thought it wasn’t too big for them. They got in there and competed and that’s a great sign.”
