Fantasy football managers who selected Amon Ra St. Brown early in the draft were in a panic this morning after their top pick made a miscue on Sunday Night Football, collecting three catches for 13 yards in the Lions’ 26-20 overtime win over the Rams.

It was St. Brown’s worst statistical performance since October 2022, his second season in the league, and the worst performance of any consensus first-round pick in 2024 Fantasy Football in Week 1.

But anyone worried about St. Brown needs to take a deep breath, because one bad game doesn’t lead to another.

This was a run-heavy game script for the Lions from the start and they never deviated from the plan, running the ball 31 times versus 28 passes from Jared Goff. Of those 28 passes, 9 went to Jameson Williams, who had the best game of his career with 5 catches for 121 yards and a TD.

You could argue that Williams, a former first-round pick, is a concern to break out of, given that he was expected to be the Lions’ leading receiver when they drafted him in 2022. But that simply isn’t the case.

The Rams focused on eliminating St. Brown and Sam LaPorta, double-marking them and giving Williams more opportunities. Now that Williams has proven he’s ready to take a leap in this offense, opponents will have to focus on him a bit more, giving St. Brown more of a chance to shine.

St. Brown had six targets in the game, tied for second most on the Lions. He had 164 targets in the regular season last year, which means he averaged 10.25 per game. While he may not get as many this season with the emergence of LaPorta, Williams and even RB Jahmyr Gibbs, he will still be the Lions’ alpha in targets when the season is over.

Consider this performance an aberration where the opponent’s play script and strategy led to a disappointing performance. He may not be the WR1 in all of fantasy football, but I don’t see him falling out of the top 5 this season either.