Coach Ross Lyon is offering his St Kilda players a mulligan after their 52-point capitulation to a red-hot Adelaide.

The Crows replaced Carlton in the top eight with a landmark 19.7 (121) to 10.9 (69) victory on Sunday at Adelaide Oval.

Taylor Walker slotted five goals as Adelaide posted their highest score under fourth-year coach Matthew Nicks and their fourth 100-plus total this season.

St Kilda, ranked No.1 for defence in Lyon's second coming as their coach, conceded their biggest score - overall and in a single six-goal quarter - this year.

"It's one game, isn't it? Everyone is going to have a game where they don't play at their best," Lyon said.

"I would like to think we have been pretty consistent. We give them a mulligan.

"It's a long season. If you make the top four, you're going to lose seven ... (but) we would have liked to have been better on a big stage.

"I am really quite buoyant and optimistic we will get back on the horse and get going ... but talk is cheap. We will get to find out next week."

Adelaide's Nicks lavished praise on his players for their "complete game".

"It was a really great win for a lot of reasons, we did a lot of things right," he said.

"We executed a plan. Our guys were really brave, the way they played; we pressed the game and took them on with the ball.

"And we gave our forwards the best chance possible, so a really complete game."

Adelaide boasted a dozen goalkickers with a dominant Walker slotting 5.0 and taking eight marks, and Izak Rankine, Luke Pedlar and Darcy Fogarty scoring two each.

Halfbacks Brodie Smith (32 disposals) and Wayne Milera (26) and midfielders Jordan Dawson (33), Rory Sloane (25) and Jake Soligo (22, one goal) were stand-outs.

The Crows cracked St Kilda early and in style, with a 6.2 to 1.1 opening term - the highest scoring quarter against the Saints in nine rounds.

The closest the Saints got thereafter was 21 points late in the second term.

And just 16 minutes into the third quarter, Adelaide led 84-42 to pass the previous highest score in an entire game against Lyon's men this season.

St Kilda forward Tim Membrey will miss next week's away game against GWS. On the ground after a marking contest, he was landed on by teammate Jack Higgins and heavily concussed.

But Lyon expected prime mover Jack Steele to be fit despite being sidelined by a knee injury late on.