Sam LaPorta talks about the Lions unfinished business, wanting the ball, blocking and more

USA Today

22-05-2025

Sam LaPorta talks about the Lions unfinished business, wanting the ball, blocking and more
Lions tight end Sam LaPorta met with the media on Thursday after the morning OTA session. The moustachioed LaPorta eruditely fielded several questions and gave some nice insight on a few Detroit topics. A summary of the tight end's interactions.
New offensive coaches
The Lions have a new offensive coordinator in John Morton, as well as a new tight ends coach in Tyler Roehl and passing game coordinator David Shaw. So far, so good as far as LaPorta sees things.
"There is some new faces. You get that every year in the NFL," LaPorta said. "You adapt, you overcome."
The third-year vet continued,
"With the new coaches, it's been great so far. Learning some new stuff, but some stuff has stayed the same. Building those relationships, continuing to do the work. It's football. It's an ever-changing, evolutionary game."
Unfinished business
"Every year we fell like there is unfinished business," LaPorta said when asked about how Detroit's season ended earlier than hoped in the playoffs. "We know that we have the players to go out and win games, and the biggest ones as well."
LaPorta didn't shy away from the pressure, which is a common theme among the players and coaches in Detroit throughout this offseason.
Continuity with Brock Wright
LaPorta is entering his third year in Detroit, and No. 2 TE Brock Wright has been with him the whole time. The two are very good together, and the continuity and communication between the duo is important to Detroit's offense.
"In terms of communication it's getting to the point where a lot of things don't need to be said between Brock and I," LaPorta stated. "We're out there and we know what we both need, we know what's going on. We kind of just look at each other and (smiles) give each other the agreeance look, like--this is how we're going to work this set."
Clean bill of health
LaPorta happily admitted that he had an offseason free of surgery or recovery from serious injuries. He played through a minor shoulder injury midway through the 2024 season, sitting out the Week 11 blowout win over the Jaguars.
"This season I came out pretty healthy," LaPorta said. "It was great. I got to take some time off and let my body relax for the first time since basically fall camp of my senior year at Iowa."
Room for personal growth
LaPorta is still known primarily as a receiving specialist around the league, but he's efforting hard to change that.
"I was very pleased with how my run game, run blocking, came along in Year 2 ... I was very pleased with how I blocked in the run game. Looking ahead to this year, just keep polishing things."
On wanting the ball more
LaPorta's production went down from his record-setting rookie campaign. His receptions dropped from 86 to 60, and the yardage fell from 889 to 726, scoring just seven TDs to 10 in his fantastic debut season. It's safe to say LaPorta isn't fazed by the lesser numbers.
"There was a lot of weapons last year. I kept hearing comments about 'why didn't you get the ball as much?' and I'm like, 'dude, we scored the most points out of any team in the NFL in the last five years.' Everybody deserves the ball."