Growing up in the St. Brown household was…peculiar. Forget cartoons and sugary cereal—try backyard cone drills, protein shakes, and a dad who looked at Xbox controllers like they were contraband. Fast forward to 2025, and Amon-Ra St. Brown is torching defenses like it’s personal. But the real fuel behind his breakout? It might not be the routes or the reps—it might be what was taken away. In a recent conversation with his father, fans got a sneak peek into a household where “sacrifice” meant something a little more… dramatic. And not everyone was ready for it.

Amon-Ra St. Brown and his brother Osiris took a trip down memory lane with their dad, John Brown—yep, the two-time Mr. Universe turned no-nonsense fitness guru. The setup was casual, but the question they threw his way wasn’t: “What sacrifices did we make growing up?” And just like that, the floodgates opened.

“I didn’t like all that Game Boy stuff. Your mama brought that in the house,” John said. Amon sense a bit of hypocrisy and hit back. “You bought us the Xbox.” But there was one little detail Amon had probably forgotten, and John reminded him (possibly bringing back childhood trauma), “I took the sledgehammer and broke it. And made you videotape it. That’s a sacrifice,” he said.

But that wasn’t the only version of “normal” Amon-Ra had to outgrow. “You’d come home, knock out your homework, and then it was straight to training with me,” John said. “You didn’t think twice. That was just life. You didn’t even realize other kids weren’t doing that until you started hanging out at their houses.” It’s one thing to romanticise “the grind.” It’s another to live it from the age of 7. But for Amon-Ra? It clearly paid off.

Fast forward to the 2024 season, and he was not just one of the league’s top wideouts—he was the go-to guy in clutch moments for the Lions. He racked up 1,517 receiving yards (4th in the NFL) and 11 touchdowns. When you have your father guiding you every step of the way? (unlike Andrew Neiman in Whiplash) The obsession isn’t necessarily unhealthy.

And this sort of parenting? It calls for respect. Well…it would’ve if John didn’t say something so controversial that it caused an earthquake on the socials.

John Brown’s controversial comments sparked nationwide debate

At first, fans were kind of into it. John Brown’s no-BS dad energy, the grind-or-go-home mindset, the tales of sacrifice—it all played into the mythos of how Amon-Ra became that dude in Detroit. But then… the conversation swerved. Hard. What started as tough-love parenting turned into a hot take on genetics and relationships, and, well, not everyone was here for it.

Right after laying out all the sacrifices—no video games, extra schoolwork, backyard sprints at sunset—John Brown suddenly shifted gears. Instead of just focusing on training, he started talking about his sons’ dating choices. Not just who they were dating, but who they should be having kids with. Why? Because, according to him, if you want elite athletes, “breeding” matters. Yup, he went there.

Just to set the stage: John’s Black, his wife Miriam is white, and together they raised three seriously gifted athletes. Equanimeous is still in the league, now with the Saints. Osiris was a standout at Stanford before injuries sidelined his pro hopes. And Amon-Ra? He just wrapped a 1,400-yard season and inked a 4-year, $120 million extension with the Lions.

What came next? “I believe in breeding,” he said bluntly. “Pick the right girl and the right guy… I’m Black, mom is white, I stepped on it once—you can’t keep stepping on it because you’re gonna mess it up.” Then, pointing to Amon-Ra’s fiancée, Brooklyn Adams, he added, “She’s half and half… so you’ve got a chance.” He didn’t stop there.

John added, “I’ve got the Black gold running through my veins,” clearly seeing himself as the blueprint. “You’ve got to find the right person to mate with,” he continued, as if athlete genetics were a breeding program. And if sports greatness isn’t your goal? “Then just go ahead and spread your seed wherever.” These bold comments, to no one’s surprise, attracted backlash.

What started out as admiration for a no-nonsense, grind-it-out dad quickly turned into a whole different conversation. People who were nodding along with the discipline and old-school work ethic started pumping the brakes once the talk turned to “breeding” and who’s worthy of having athletic kids. It got uncomfortable fast.