Sam LaPorta

Lions News: Detroit plummets in ESPN’s under-25 rankings

For years, the Detroit Lions have been hailed as one of the teams with the most young and promising talent. After years of great drafts from general manager Brad Holmes, Detroit not only had blue-chip players, but blue-chip players that would be in Detroit for years and years to come. But is that era coming to an end? Aaron Schatz of ESPN ranked NFL teams by the amount of talent they had that is under 25 years old. After placing sixth in the rankings last year, the Lions fell all the way to 23rd. Per Schatz, the Lions only have a single blue-chip player under 25 years old: running back Jahmyr Gibbs. But he does mention some players who could take a big step toward being key fixtures in Detroit. “Wide receiver Isaac TeSlaa is also 24, while Blake Miller , a first-round rookie tackle, is 22,” Schatz wrote. “On defense, safety/nickelback Brian Branch will likely be back on the field after recovering from an Achilles tear when he turns 25 in October. Last year’s first-round pick, defensive tackle Tyleik Williams , is still 23. Cornerback Ennis Rakestraw Jr. , who has battled injuries, is 24, while second-round rookie edge rusher Derrick Moore is 23.” Of course, it’s worth noting that 25 years old is a pretty arbitrary cut-off, and it specifically hurts the Lions this year. That’s because Penei Sewell , Jameson Williams , Sam LaPorta , Aidan Hutchinson Jack Campbell, and Kerby Joseph are all currently 25 years old. All of those players have the opportunity to play in Detroit for a long time and still have plenty of time left in their prime. At the same time, it does feel like this is a strike against the Lions’ two most recent draft classes. In 2024, the misses on Terrion Arnold , Ennis Rakestraw, and Giovanni Manu are starting to hurt. It’s far too early to judge the 2025 draft class, but if Tyleik Williams , Tate Ratledge , and Isaac TeSlaa don’t take Year 2 jumps, it could leave the Lions in a tough spot. Young, cheap talent is critical to offset Detroit’s aging and expensive core players. At this point, I wouldn’t put too much stock into this ranking given how much 25-year-old talent Detroit has. However, if they continue to plummet in these rankings in the years to come, there will be some serious questions to answer. Our Feed Post of the Day comes from West.of.Woodward who makes a compelling argument that Detroit’s investment in pass protection could help out the rushing offense: Great profile on Lions offensive assistant coach Marques Tuiasosopo here from Detroit Football network, including some background on how he helps Jared Goff prepare each week. [Also, happy anniversary to Justin Rogers, as he enters Year 3 of his independent venture ] Cody Alexander is a great follow on Twitter. Here are two nice breakdowns of Detroit’s defense from last year and a reminder of a few good things Kelvin Sheppard cooked up last year: Colton Pouncy of The Athletic has 6 (or 10?) Lions players with the most to gain/lose this training camp . Here’s a rare clip of a crew of ESPN talking heads being optimistic about the Lions: A fun look at the’ 20 biggest trades in the last 30 years in all Detroit sports , from Detroit News’ John Niyo. Spoiler: the Matthew Stafford/Jared Goff trade is No. 1. Only one other Lions trade makes the list. Can you guess it?

Top 10 players for the Detroit Lions’ 2026 season: Part 1 (10-6)

This article ranks the Detroit Lions' players from 10 to 6 for the 2026 season. McNeill, LaPorta, and Branch are discussed, with their rankings influenced by recent injury history and potential for future performance. McNeill drops one spot due to an ACL recovery, LaPorta also drops one spot due to a back injury but is expected to return to form, and Branch's ranking is also affected by injuries

Survey: How many receiving yards will Sam LaPorta have in 2026?

A survey asks about Sam LaPorta's projected receiving yards for the 2026 season, noting he has been fully cleared from injury

Sam LaPorta fully cleared ahead of Lions training camp

Lions tight end Sam LaPorta dealt with a back injury that cut his season short in 2025. Here's the latest injury update on the fourth-year player

Report: Sam LaPorta fully cleared from injury for Lions training camp

Sam LaPorta fully cleared from injury for Lions training camp

Sam LaPorta fully cleared for training camp

Lions tight end Sam LaPorta was fully cleared earlier this month, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN reports. The Pro Bowler is expected to be full go in training camp, though the Lions could be deliberate in his return. LaPorta played only nine games last season, with a back issue landing him on injured reserve in November. The herniated disc required surgery, but he went through walk-throughs during the offseason program. LaPorta finished 2025 with 40 receptions for 489 yards and three touchdowns. He had 86 receptions for 889 yards with 10 touchdowns as a rookie before tallying 60 receptions for 726 yards and seven touchdowns in 2024. He is entering the final year of his rookie deal as a second-round pick in 2023

Sam LaPorta — Active

Sleeper status change for Sam LaPorta (10859). Before: status=Active, injury_status=Questionable. After: status=Active, injury_status=

Jameson Williams a High-Risk, High-Reward Receiver for 2026

Jameson Williams' fantasy value in 2026 is uncertain due to the Lions' new offense and competition for targets

What will Brock Bowers be worth when he’s extension eligible?

Brock Bowers, the Raiders' first-round pick, is set to become eligible for a contract extension next offseason. Given his franchise player status, the Raiders are expected to prioritize extending him. His potential future contract is likely to exceed current deals for tight ends like Kyle Pitts and Brendan Strange, and could approach or surpass the averages of top earners like George Kittle and Trey McBride, potentially reaching $20-22 million per season

2026 Detroit Lions 53-man roster prediction: Pre-training camp

We’re just over a week away from the Detroit Lions opening training camp for the 2026 season. With that in mind, I figured now was a good time to give my own perspective on the team’s 90-man roster and what it may look like after the dust of camp and the preseason has settled. Obviously, the outlook of this projection will change over the next month as the players jockey for spots. But here’s how I believe the roster stands before the players take the field. QB Jared Goff QB Teddy Bridgewater QB Luke Altmyer I am not counting out rookie UDFA Luke Altmyer winning a roster spot by the end of training camp, but the much more likely scenario is that he sticks around on the practice squad to continue his development. But if he balls out in the preseason, it could produce an interesting conversation. RB Jahmyr Gibbs RB Isiah Pacheco RB Sione Vaki RB Jacob Saylors RB Kye Robichaux RB Jabari Small Gibbs through Vaki are essentially locks to me. The question is whether Detroit should carry a fourth running back. Generally, they do , and when the Lions chose Saylors over Craig Reynolds last season, I think it was a revelation of how much they value his special teams. TE Sam LaPorta TE Brock Wright TE Tyler Conklin TE Zach Horton TE Thomas Gordon TE Miles Kitselman The Lions have recently only kept three tight ends on their roster, but I do wonder if last year’s depleted depth will make them reconsider in 2026. It’s hard for me to pick between Horton, Gordon, and Kitselman with little observations on each. If Drew Petzing plans on running more 13 personnel in Detroit, the Lions would almost certainly keep a fourth. However, they also invested highly in their wide receiver group, so I’m not convinced 13 personnel is coming to Detroit. Therefore, I’m keeping three tight ends for now. WR Amon-Ra St. Brown WR Jameson Williams WR Isaac TeSlaa WR Greg Dortch WR Cedrick Wilson Jr. WR Dominic Lovett WR Jackson Meeks WR Tom Kennedy WR Tay Martin WR Lawrence Keys WR Lucky Jackson WR Tarik Black WR Malik Cunningham When I made my initial picks for the 53-man roster, I was only at 52 players with Dominic Lovett out. He’s thus far underwhelmed as both a receiver (too many drops) and special teams (just 50 snaps his rookie season). However, Detroit invested in him, and he could see a Year 2 jump. I very much considered Jackson Meeks here, especially considering I went light at tight end, but I still think he is a work in progress at both WR and TE. OT Blake Miller OT Penei Sewell OT Larry Borom OT Giovanni Manu OT Devin Cochran Giovanni Manu was also one of my last players in. Admittedly, he may spend most weeks as an inactive in this role, but I do think Detroit would be willing to give him one more year to develop. After all, Larry Borom is only on a one-year deal. I’m still giving Manu a shot to become the OT3 of the future, even if if the door to a starting offensive tackle job is closed for him. iOL Christian Mahogany iOL Cade Mays iOL Tate Ratledge iOL Ben Bartch iOL Miles Frazier iOL Juice Scruggs i OL Seth McLaughlin iOL Melvin Priestly iOL Michael Niese iOL Mason Miller OL Colby Sorsdal I do like the depth here, and I think the Lions would be wise to keep as many of these players as they can. Barch and Scruggs are two experienced players who provide solide depth. Frazier will not only compete for the starting left guard spot, but he brings tackle versatility and has plenty of potential entering his first training camp (after missing all of last year’s practices). I’m not sure anyone else on the depth chart can realistically challenge for a starting position, but I am admittedly intrigued by Seth McLaughlin . It’s just hard to see him winning the backup center job after Detroit traded for Scruggs. EDGE Aidan Hutchinson EDGE DJ Wonnum EDGE Derrick Moore EDGE Ahmed Hassanein EDGE Payton Turner EDGE Anthony Lucas EDGE Eric O’Neill Three edge defenders sounds like a small amount, and I would have loved to find a place for Ahmed Has [... truncated ...]

Sam LaPorta joins NFLPA in call for natural grass fields in all NFL stadiums

Sam LaPorta has publicly supported the NFLPA's campaign to mandate natural grass fields in all NFL stadiums, following the conversion of several venues to grass for the World Cup

Cap expert suggests Sam LaPorta could fetch franchise tag in 2027

A former NFL agent and salary cap expert thinks Sam LaPorta is a candidate for the franchise tag in 2027

Lions News: Why Sam LaPorta could be in for career year

Sam LaPorta could be in for a career-year in 2026

NFL minds rank Jake Ferguson as top half tight end

ESPN's ranking of tight ends, based on input from league executives, coaches, and scouts, placed Jake Ferguson as an honorable mention outside the top 10. While praised for his all-around solid play and high catch volume, Ferguson's fumbling issues were cited as a significant reason for his ranking. All seven of his career fumbles have occurred in the last two seasons and were against NFC opponents

Trade: Sam LaPorta, Travis Hunter, George Pickens, Tucker Kraft

*Under Contruction* trade — Vindicators 2 received: Travis Hunter, Tucker Kraft, and 2027 1st round pick (orig Jeanty’s Juggernaunts). Jeanty’s Juggernaunts received: George Pickens and Sam LaPorta

Lions News: Detroit’s roster ranks just outside top 5

Earlier this offseason, ESPN’s Mike Clay ranked every single roster for the 2026 season, and he had the Detroit Lions fourth overall —a stark reminder that some outsiders still really like the Lions’ roster despite a turbulent offseason. This week, Clay teamed up with a couple other co-workers—Aaron Schatz and Seth Walder—to re-rank all of the NFL rosters . And to no surprise, the Lions remain one of the best teams in the league, by their measures. Detroit came in sixth in the rankings, behind the Rams , Eagles, Seahawks , Bills, and Ravens , in that order. Within each section, the team of writers identified each teams’ biggest strength, weakness, x-factor and a nonstarter to know. It’s hard to disagree with their choices for biggest strength and weakness for the Lions: skill position players and the secondary, respectively. “Running back Jahmyr Gibbs, WRs Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams and TE Sam LaPorta form one of the league’s best groups of skill players,” Clay wrote. Clay noted that Detroit’s secondary has talent, but injuries ( D.J. Reed , Kerby Joseph , Brian Branch )—combined with Terrion Arnold ’s off-field issues and subsequent release—has raised plenty of questions. “This has the potential to be a very good group, but questions will need to be answered,” Clay wrote. The article identifies Blake Miller as the x-factor and Christian Izien as the nonstarter to know. You’ll have to click through to see why . The rest of the NFC North is ranked well below Detroit in ESPN’s list. The Packers are 10th, Bears 17th, and Vikings 22nd. If you want an opposing viewpoint, ESPN’s Mina Kimes welcomed Ryan Clark to her podcast, and in a bit of an unconventional style of power ranking — Kimes gives the guest two options for the next best team — the Lions came out… 16th! The Athletic put together a pretty detailed and fairly balanced timeline of everything involved in the Terrion Arnold legal case. A reminder that you can always share your stories, thoughts, roster predictions, and other musings over on The Feed . Each weekday, I like to feature one of my favorite here in our Notes post. Today, here is Hunt Baker’s thoughtful post on the front office, Terrion Arnold’s situation, and the inevitability of problems out of your control: Justin Rogers of Detroit Football Network p rojected what a Brian Branch extension may look like , even though he admits the team will likely wait to see how he recovers from his Achilles. Lions coach Dan Skipper looked like he had one hell of a Fourth of July: Good story from Kory Woods from MLive on how Lions safety Thomas Harper isn’t taking time off this summer . He’s grinding to build on a promising 2025 season

Trade: Sam LaPorta, Bucky Irving, Jaylin Noel +3 more

Chicago/MSU League trade — RBs - WE HAVE THE MEATS received: Jahmyr Gibbs and Jaylin Noel. Who Am I? received: Bucky Irving, Mike Evans, Sam LaPorta, Tee Higgins, and 2026 1st round pick (orig RBs - WE HAVE THE MEATS)

Trade: Sam LaPorta, Bucky Irving, Jaylin Noel +3 more

The gap in the tight end market is starting to fill: What it means for Tucker Kraft

Prior to Tuesday, there were no tight ends in the NFL who were on multi-year contracts that averaged between $19 million per year and $13.3 million per year. As you can imagine, that was a pretty significant gap in the market for teams, players and representation to operate in. Then, Kyle Pitts signed a three-year, $54 million contract ($18 million per year), and now Brenton Strange has signed a three-year, $48 million ($16 million per year) deal . Green Bay Packers tight end Tucker Kraft , who was having a career year before he tore his ACL in 2025, was always probably going to get money in the George Kittle ($19.1 million per) or Trey McBride ($19 million per) range, but the recent extensions of Pitts and Strange have certainly set a floor for his market. For perspective, Isaiah Likely , who was only a part-time player with the Baltimore Ravens , signed a $13.3 million per year deal with the New York Giants , where former Ravens coach John Harbaugh is now running the show, this free agency cycle. For years, the tight end market has lagged behind other positions in terms of wage increases, but the position is finally starting to see some movement. On the Packers’ end, there probably isn’t any huge reason for urgency to get a Kraft deal done in the immediate future, as the only other major tight end left on an expiring contract going into 2026 is the Detroit Lions ’ Sam LaPorta . Unless LaPorta signs a deal that significantly resets the tight end market before the Packers can ink a contract with Kraft, timing shouldn’t be a big deal, as long as they get a contract done with the tight end before the season ends. Over the long haul, players’ wages increase at every position in the NFL. It’s just worth noting that this week, specifically, has been a period in which the arrowing is trending upward for tight ends. We should also mention that the Packers tend to sign young starters to four-year extensions, compared to the three-year deals that Pitts and Strange have signed, and generally give low guarantees (usually just a bigger signing bonus and the first year’s salary) on their contract, so don’t be surprised if Kraft’s extension eventually ends up having a high APY over four years with relatively low guarantees compared to some of these deals

9 winners from Detroit Lions OTAs, minicamp

Before we get into my list of the nine biggest winners from Detroit Lions OTAs and minicamp, let’s make one thing clear: jobs are not won in the spring. Practices are very low-key, and coaches are using most of the time to start installing the playbook and getting their players up to speed mentally. At the same time, our first look at the 2026 Detroit Lions also allows us to see where the depth chart initially stands heading into training camp. And having talked with just about every coach on staff over the past month, we also have some initial impressions to work with. So with that in mind, here are my nine biggest winners from the spring program. With Sam LaPorta limited to walkthroughs and veteran Tyler Conklin missing the last couple weeks of practice, it was very interesting to see that it was undrafted rookie Miles Kitselman getting some time with the first and second-team offense. Kitselman received a modest $115,000 guaranteed in his UDFA contract , so he’s by no means a lock to make the roster. But amongst very young depth, Kitselman appeared to be the early standout. All the early indications of a Year 2 jump for Isaac TeSlaa are there. He’s been uncontested third receiver alongside Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams , and coaches have really praised just how comfortable he looks. “He is just steady, he’s steady, he is consistent for a young guy, he doesn’t get frazzled,” coach Dan Campbell said. “I mean this as a compliment, what he’s done out here is in the spring, Phase II, OTAs and all of that, it has just been very—there’s been nothing like flashy about it, and that is a good thing.” And he’s apparently improved on several things, from his breaks to his overall strength. “He’s done a good job of going and getting the football since he’s been here and then now at the top of his breaks, they’re so much cleaner,” receivers coach Scottie Montgomery said. “He’s so much stronger. Last year, what I like to do is I like to watch where we were, especially from an athleticism standpoint to where he is now. It’s not even close.” When the David Montgomery trade down, I admittedly looked at Scruggs as a throw-in piece. While he had 20 games of starting experience, I figured he’d be a bubble player who would have to really prove himself to land a spot on the 53. Now, I have him just outside of a “lock.” Why? Well, because he’s consistently been the backup center during all of the spring, and because he’s also been repping at the other two interior offensive line spots, including some brief time with the starters at left guard. On top of that, apparently the Lions front office made it clear that they really wanted him as part of the Montgomery trade. “He really wants me here,” Scruggs told Detroit Football Network regarding Lions GM Brad Holmes. “He likes my game. So, it’s just like a relief, like a fresh start.” When the Lions went into a five-man front this spring and were in need of a 4i or 5-tech, it was almost always Tyler Lacy who was the first man up. Maybe that’s because Levi Onwuzurike is still working his way back from his torn ACL from last year, but I think it’s more than that. Let’s not forget that Lacy played 237 defensive snaps for this team last year and is still just 26 years old. “He kind of jumped on and picked up the scheme and just took off and kind of ran with it,” Lions defensive line coach Kacy Rodgers said. “So far, I thought he’s had a really good spring. He’s another piece that adds another piece that’s gonna make probably some hard decisions for Dan and Brad down the road.” It’s worth noting that Lacy will not only have to hold off Onwuzurike, but Ahmed Hassanein added some weight and strength and will also be competing for that big end position. Turner came to Detroit with a ton of questions about him. A former first-round pick, he’s seen his career fizzle out largely due to injury. He’s got a tough road to the roster with D.J. Wonnum and Derrick Moore added this offseason, but to [... truncated ...]