They say the best revenge is a dish best served cold. That’s what Detroit Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown fed recently to Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver George Pickens.
Back in October, Pickens called St. Brown a “Slot Merchant” and rather than be mad about it, he got the last laugh turning the diss into profit. He is selling sweatshirts with “Slot Merchant” on it on his website to troll Pickens.
Amon-Ra St. Brown, the “Slot Merchant”
This is what Pickens said in October:
“I probably say schematically is the big thing in football. That’s how you get Amon-Ra St. Brown, slot merchants, that’s schematically getting fed the ball,” Pickens explained. “When it comes to that, I ain’t playing QB, o-line, and defense all at once. So schematically, that’s probably the biggest thing in that way for me to really show the world a bigger platform over my game style.”
Pickens, who at the time had zero touchdowns at the time of his interview, thought very highly of himself.
“I definitely feel like, you know, me averaging 18.1 (yards per reception) last season, in, what is it, year three? Yeah,” he said. “Not five, six, seven, eight, or nine. So I definitely feel like I’m top five, top three just off of, I just got here. I definitely think I’m top five, if not better. Some guys, certain situations are better for certain receivers. That’s really the most I can say.”
St. Brown has been way more productive this season, while Pickens only has three touchdowns going into the playoffs.
St. Brown Has Been Better
If you look at the stats, St. Brown is the better and most productive receiver.
St. Brown is better than Pickens everywhere. This is QB-sorted data (Amon-Ra with Jared Goff and Pickens with Russell Wilson). St. Brown is 350.4% better than all other Lions in yards per slot route, while Pickens is 161.1% better than all Steelers from the slot.
On the season, St. Brown has 1,200+ yards receiving and 12 touchdowns while averaging 11 yards per catch.
Meanwhile, Pickens has 900 yards receiving and only three touchdowns, although he averages more yards per catch at 15. 3 per catch.
But the Steelers have lost four straight games heading into the playoffs and have struggled recently on offense with Pickens being responsible for several dropped passes. Per PFN’s Offense+ metric, the Steelers rank 25th overall (a D+ grade), while the Lions own the No. 1 offense (A grade).
St. Brown and the Lions head into the playoffs as the No. 1 seed in the NFC with an offense that has been on fire all season and is the favorite this year to make it to the Super Bowl, plus he’s now making money off what some may consider a put-down.
Not bad for a guy who is seen as just a “Slot Merchant.”