ALLEN PARK — Donovan Peoples-Jones was short on words in his first meeting with reporters in Detroit’s locker room. But the new Lions wide receiver made it clear that he feels blessed to return to his hometown team and joining a first-place squad.
“It’s very exciting. I’m blessed to be here. I’m blessed to be a part of this team,” Peoples-Jones said on Thursday. “It’s an amazing culture. I love everybody here … I’m blessed to be here with this team, in this moment, right now. They’re doing an amazing job and I’m blessed to be a part of it.”
Peoples-Jones was acquired at the trade deadline via the Cleveland Browns. The former Michigan standout and legendary Cass Tech wideout was sent this way for a 2025 fifth-round pick after falling the depth chart. He added that his family feels the same way about the move back home — “blessed” and “excited.”
Star Lions receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown said that when he first saw Peoples-Jones, he asked him how much he weighed, expecting the answer to be around “230.”
“He’s a big body. I asked him how much he weighed, and he said 210. I’m like, ‘Bro, you look 230,’” St. Brown said. “Boy’s swole. But he should be a great addition for us, a guy that can make a big-body catch, can run fast … He can do a lot of things. You can never have enough weapons on offense.”
It’s worth noting that the Browns have struggled passing the ball this season. And that might be an understatement, so it’s hard to pin that on Peoples-Jones.
The 24-year-old has been a productive, field-stretching wide receiver through his four years in the league. Peoples-Jones had his most productive year last season when he caught 61 passes for 839 yards and three touchdowns. He had 597 yards in 2021 and compiled 304 yards as a sixth-round rookie in 2020.
“I’m here. I’m focused on Detroit and moving forward,” Peoples-Jones said. “I’m blessed to be here. I’m really truly blessed to be in this position, in this building, with these teammates and my coach.”
And offensive coordinator Ben Johnson hopes the 6-foot-2, sturdy wideout can help some of the team’s red-zone woes. They’re scoring on 48.1% of their trips inside the 20-yard line, the 24th-best mark in the league.
Peoples-Jones brings a new flavor on paper, though. He’s a physical wideout who thrives on the outside. Peoples-Jones scored 9.63 in Relative Athletic Score coming out of Michigan. What’s promising about his contributions around these parts is that 44.5-inch vertical. That’s just something the Lions don’t have.
And while the new wideout popped up on the injury report this week with a rib injury, Peoples-Jones doesn’t seem concerned about that slowing his acclimation or debut.
“So, those guys don’t grow on trees, and I think so far what we’ve seen from him is exactly that,” Johnson said of his new wide receiver. “Really fluid route runner, strong hands, big catch radius and I think he can work both outside and inside. And probably, even better than that at least from my perspective, is everyone talks about how smart he is. And so, that’s something that we really need in that room.
“We ask a lot out of our guys lining up in different areas and being very detailed. So, I think he’ll fit in really nicely.”