A lot went wrong for the Dallas Cowboys in their 44-30 loss to the Detroit Lions on Thursday. A big storyline coming in, though, was whether Detroit would have stud wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, who suffered a lateral ankle sprain one week ago on Thanksgiving.
Lions head coach Dan Campbell described it as a 1-2 week injury, and St. Brown was viewed as a genuine game-time decision. Not even national insiders could get any clarity in the days leading up to kickoff.
As it turns out, though, St. Brown knew two days before the game that he was going to play. That certainly checks out, because the two-time All-Pro didn't have the look of a player who was in danger of not playing. He caught six of nine targets for 92 yards, including a long of 37.
“Probably found out about two days before the game that I could go, and officially yesterday. I ran some routes after the walkthrough and felt pretty good that I was gonna go today," St. Brown told Charissa Thompson on the NFL on Prime Video's postgame show.
Cowboys fans should be furious over Lions' handling of Amon-Ra St. Brown's injury
If St. Brown knew on Tuesday that he was going to play, and was definitive on Wednesday that he was good to go, why wasn't his status revealed until right before kickoff?
That admittedly is more of an NFL problem than a Lions issue, and it makes sense why he didn't practice all week before the game. But it was obvious during warmups that he didn't have much, if any, limitations.
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The Cowboys likely prepared as if St. Brown was going to play, but it's quite irritating that he looked nearly fully healthy. ESPN's Adam Schefter tweeted the following after St. Brown was ruled as active:
"Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown, who did not practice this week due to an ankle sprain he suffered Thanksgiving Day vs. the Packers, officially is active tonight vs. the Cowboys — to the surprise and relief of his team."
"To the surprise and relief of his team"? He went through a full workout before the game, and he didn't show any signs of a limp. Teams and agents pushing narratives through the media is nothing new, and St. Brown is one of the toughest players in the NFL, but it's not hard to see right through this.
It wasn't a surprise that St. Brown played. He's tough as nails, and he wanted to be out there with his teammates in a must-win game.
But the Lions absolutely embellished this whole thing.