The Detroit Lions selected Isaac TeSlaa in the third round of the 2025 NFL Draft. The Michigan native joins a Lions team coming off a second straight NFC North title. He recently sat down with his teammate Amon-Ra St. Brown and his brother Equanimeous St. Brown to discuss the other teams in the division.
Isaac TeSlaa Blasts One NFC North Team
TeSlaa initially stayed close to home in college, attending Division II Hillsdale College. His father played receiver at Hillsdale, and other family members attended the school, so it was an easy choice for the lightly recruited TeSlaa.
After two productive years, he transferred to Arkansas and played in 25 games over his final two seasons. TeSlaa totaled 62 receptions, 896 yards, and five touchdowns as a Razorback and declared for the 2025 NFL Draft.
At the 2025 NFL Scouting Combine, he measured 6’3 5/8″, 214 pounds, and ran a 4.43 40-yard dash. Detroit moved up to draft TeSlaa with the 70th overall pick, and he walks into a loaded Lions offense.
Detroit was the No. 1 offense in PFSN’s Offense+ metric last season, finishing as the top offense in pass success rate and third-best in rush success rate. Jared Goff was PFSN’s No. 2 quarterback, according to the QB+ metric, and will hopefully build a connection with TeSlaa.
Ben Johnson’s departure leaves this unit with many questions. The new Chicago Bears coach knows his old team inside and out, as do the Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings.
TeSlaa spoke with the St. Brown borthers, and was asked about the other teams in the NFC North on the “St. Brown Podcast.”
#Lions rookie WR Isaac TeSlaa on the #Packers:
“Oh I hate the Packers, with a burning passion”
😤🔥
(🎥: @StBrownPodcast) pic.twitter.com/HjJwivEai6
— 𝔗𝔥𝔢 𝔇𝔢𝔱𝔯𝔬𝔦𝔱 𝔗𝔦𝔪𝔢𝔰 📰 (@the_det_times)
Equanimeous asked, “You probably know who’s in your division, right? Some rookies don’t know.” Amon-Ra asked, “Who’s in the NFC North?”
TeSlaa said, “Lions, Bears, Vikings,” then paused and said, “Lions, Bears, Vikings, Packers. Packers Week 1.”
Equanimeous said, “So, you hate the Packer probably.” The rookie responded, “Oh, I hate the Packers, with a burning passion.” Equanimeous threw in that he’s a “Packers guy,” after playing four seasons for Green Bay.
TeSlaa likely became Lions fans’ second-favorite receiver behind Amon-Ra with that statement. Amon-Ra has been a key cog in Detroit’s offense since arriving in 2021. He was named first-team All-Pro for the second straight season after posting 115 receptions, 1,263 yards, and 12 touchdowns last year.
TeSlaa has a great chance to contribute as a rookie, but the offense still runs through Goff, Amon-Ra, and the running game.
Detroit’s first postseason as the NFC’s No. 1 seed ended aburptly in the Divisional Round, and the path to an NFC North three-peat will be much harder in 2025. On top of their three divisional road games, the Lions will travel to the Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, Kansas City Chiefs, Washington Commanders, Philadelphia Eagles, and Los Angeles Rams.
All but two of their 2025 road games are against 2024 playoff teams. The schedule is much more difficult for Detroit, but the Dan Campbell will have his guys ready to go.