The Detroit Lions decided to double down with tight ends from Iowa by selecting Sam LaPorta in the 2023 NFL Draft. Will he have a bigger fantasy football impact as a rookie than T.J. Hockenson did?
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Sam LaPorta’s Fantasy Outlook
The “rookie TEs rarely have a fantasy impact” narrative does have a lengthy history to support it.
Over the last five seasons, only Kyle Pitts, who is widely considered one of the most talented pass-catching TE prospects in NFL history, finished as a top-10 tight end in PPR formats.
However, with the fantasy TE landscape containing anywhere from 4-7 elite options — depending on who you ask — is there room for a highly talented rookie tight end to be an outlier in 2023?
Well, if you were to have to place a bet on which rookie TE could sneak into the top 10 this season, you can make a compelling case that LaPorta should be the early favorite.
First off, I mean absolutely no disrespect to the likes of Brock Wright, James Mitchell, Darrell Daniels, and Daniel Helm, who have 55 career receptions combined, but LaPorta is the most talented TE on the roster by a fair margin.
LaPorta is a very fluid athlete who regularly creates separation against man coverage and is an absolute nightmare to get to the ground once he gets a head of steam but has a lot of wiggle and surprising start/stop ability at the point of contact to eat up as many yards after the catch as possible.
Despite weighing 245 pounds, LaPorta displays a lot of route-running nuance that helps him regularly create separation. He changes gears and tempo to keep defenders off balance. He also understands how to attack leverage to set up his defenders before bursting out of his breaks at the top of the route.
And while he is an absolute tank to get to the ground once he gets rolling, he has way more wiggle and elusiveness than you would expect for a man his size.
Sam LaPorta is looking DANGEROUS 😳
LaPorta reportedly looks “far and away” the best TE on the Lions roster.
LaPorta has reportedly already became one of Jared Goff’s “primary” targets.
The Lions reportedly plan for LaPorta to play a big role right away.
The Lions seem to… pic.twitter.com/DP8U00HDXK
— NFL Rookie Watch (@NFLRookieWatxh)
Now, he does have some things to work on as a pure run blocker at the next level, but he put forth a ton of quality run-blocking reps as an in-line tight end that makes me feel confident it won’t cost him too many reps during his rookie year.
Before being traded to the Minnesota Vikings, Hockenson averaged 3.7 receptions for 56 yards per game in his seven games with the Lions last year. When Hock was in this same offense with QB Jared Goff for an entire season, he finished 11th in TE fantasy points per game in PPR formats.
If LaPorta wins the starting job — as many expect him to heading into the season — then LaPorta could be stepping into a fantasy-friendly role in 2023.
Should You Draft Sam LaPorta at His Current Price?
The fact that rookie TEs rarely become fantasy studs is a contributing factor to LaPorta’s current ADP (160 overall) as the TE17 coming off the board.
But when you take into consideration the lack of TE competition currently on Detroit’s roster and LaPorta’s dynamic skill set as a pass catcher, it is very possible, if not likely, that LaPorta will be the primary TE in a very potent offense.
His current price in the 14th round makes him well worth the investment, and he has real upside to drastically outperform his current ADP.