How message in mirror has helped Detroit Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown in pursuit of history

Amon-Ra St. Brown has a small mirror hanging in his locker, one given to him by Detroit Lions co-director of player engagement Sean Pugh earlier this season.

Pugh presented the mirrors to members of the Lions’ leadership council with simple instructions: Write something on it that can make you a better leader and look at it every day.

The messages run the gamut from personal to motivational.

You’re built different.

Consistency, Confidence, Sacrifice.

DQ household name.

St. Brown chose a simple two-word phrase he has tried to live by since he came to the NFL humbled as a fourth-round pick: Be consistent.

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“I think for me, well, especially in this league, you’re only as good as your last week, really,” St. Brown said. “And it’s easy to do it maybe one or two weeks, six weeks, a year. But to do it year after year after year is what’s hard, and for me that’s something I pride myself on is not a guy that can only do it one time, I can keep doing it year in and year out, and that’s kind of been my goal.”

With two games left in his third NFL season, plus a playoff run that could keep him busy till February, St. Brown has been a model of consistency for the Lions.

He has at least 90 receptions in each of his three seasons. He has improved annually in receptions, yards and touchdowns. And when the Lions play the Dallas Cowboys on Saturday in Arlington, Texas, he should pass Christian McCaffrey for the third-most receptions by a player in his first three seasons in NFL history.

St. Brown has 302 catches in his first 47 career games. Justin Jefferson (324), Michael Thomas (321) and McCaffrey (303) are the only other players with at least 300 catches in their first three years.

“It’s awesome, it’s humbling, it’s cool,” St. Brown said. “But I think winning is the most important thing, is the best feeling I feel like as a team cause you work so hard from OTAs to camp to the beginning of preseason to how long the season is, and just to be able to enjoy wins with your teammates I think is the best feeling in this league. So we did that 11 times this year and all 11 felt great, but like I said, we got obviously the Cowboys this week, but two big opponents coming up before we head in the playoffs. It’s going to be a good test for us. I’m excited for it. I think we all are.”

St. Brown has at least six catches and 70 yards receiving in 11 of his 14 games this season, a remarkable run considering the lengths defenses have gone to try to prevent him getting the ball.

He has three games with double-digit catches, against the Baltimore Ravens, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Minnesota Vikings (in last week’s NFC North-clinching win). And he has three games with five or fewer grabs.

He caught five passes for 56 yards in a September win over the Green Bay Packers, when he strained his abdominal muscle in the game and sat out the following week, and he had five catches combined in December games against the Chicago Bears and New Orleans Saints.

That stretch aside, St. Brown has been Jared Goff’s go-to target in just about every situation imaginable. Sixty-five of his catches have gone for first downs this season; No. 2 and 3 receivers Josh Reynolds and Kalif Raymond have combined for 66 combined this season. And he has caught a career-high eight touchdown passes, including five in the Lions’ past seven games.

St. Brown said “a multitude of things” have helped him sustain his consistency through the years.

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“Obviously, me, myself, who I am, the people that I’m surrounded with, the coaches, my teammates,” he said. “My family. Just everyone combined, I think, is a part of the reason why I’ve been able to do what I do, but again, you’re only as good as your last week so I got to keep going.”

This week, St. Brown and the Lions (11-4) will be in for one of their sternest tests of the season against a Cowboys team that has won 15 straight home games, dating back to Week 1 of last year, and has one of the stingiest pass defenses in the NFL (184 yards per game).

Top Cowboys cornerback DaRon Bland leads the league with eight interceptions and has returned an NFL record five of those for scores.

St. Brown called Bland “a good corner” who “jumps routes well.”

“He knows when to take chances, so for us as receivers we’re going to have to be aware of that,” St. Brown said.

And he said he’s looking forward to playing in Dallas again after he barely got the chance last year.

St. Brown had the worst statistical game of his career against the Cowboys last season, when he caught one pass for 4 yards and was pulled from the game after 10 offensive snaps by the medical spotter to be checked for a concussion.

“Last year was kind of unfortunate what happened, but I’m excited to go out and play,” St. Brown said. “I only was able to play like, I don’t know, barely two drives that game so I’m just excited to be back out there with the guys, primetime, against a good team this late in the season, actually with a team that hasn’t lost at home. It’s going to be fun.”

Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Consistency is key for record-setting Detroit Lions' Amon-Ra St. Brown