In Week 12, the Detroit Lions defeated the New York Giants in an overtime thriller, improving their record to 7-4 and maintaining their position as the third-place team in the NFC North.
The team struggled offensively against the Giants, partly due to the injury to tight end Sam LaPorta. Here’s an update on his status for Week 13 and the rest of the NFL season.
When Will Sam LaPorta Return?
In Week 10, the Lions faced off against the Washington Commanders in a match reminiscent of the 2024 playoffs, in which the Commanders eliminated the Lions. However, this time the Lions got their revenge, beating them by a score of 44-22.
Despite the win, their star tight end went down with an injury. What was thought of as a standard back injury turned out to be much worse. In response to the injury, head coach Dan Campbell said the following:
“Sam did have a procedure, and he’s going to be out for a while. I think we would be fortunate to have a chance to get him back for the rest of the season at some point. I think that (chance) is very, very slim.”
Unfortunately for the Lions, it doesn’t sound like LaPorta will be returning this season.
The Lions drafted LaPorta in the second round of the 2023 NFL Draft with the 34th overall pick. LaPorta came in to fill a hole at tight end that was left after the team traded T.J. Hockenson to the division rival Minnesota Vikings.
LaPorta immediately made an impact, adding a new layer of depth to the Lions’ offense. In the 2024 season, he was targeted 120 times, catching 86 of them for 889 yards and ten touchdowns. Additionally, he was selected for the Pro Bowl.
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LaPorta’s production decreased the following season. On 83 targets, he caught 60 balls for 726 yards and seven touchdowns.
In nine games this season, he was targeted 49 times and caught 40 balls for 489 yards and three touchdowns. Additionally, he ranks fourth in PFSN’s Tight End Impact rankings with a letter grade of B+ and an impact score of 87.3.
Moving forward for the rest of the season, the Lions will rely on tight end Brock Wright to fill the massive hole left by LaPorta’s injury.
Wright has spent five years with the Lions as an undrafted free agent. In his career, he’s been targeted 93 times. In those 93 targets, he’s caught 70 passes for 632 yards and 11 touchdowns.
The injury to LaPorta is unfortunate, but the team has more than enough offensive firepower to compensate for the loss with Jahmyr Gibbs, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams, and David Montgomery.
Detroit Lions’ Insights for Week 13
Team: The Lions are 38-45-2 on Thanksgiving, including 12-9-1 against the Packers. Detroit beat Chicago last Thanksgiving to snap a seven-game losing streak on the holiday.
QB: Jared Goff has thrown for at least 275 passing yards in four of 11 games this season. He has 16 such games in 34 games in the previous two seasons.
Offense: The Lions are 3-2 in the last five games, and Jahmyr Gibbs’ performance in wins and losses is drastic. He has 218 yards from scrimmage per game with eight touchdowns in the three wins, while he’s had 174 total yards, 107 from scrimmage in the two games with no scores. 75 of the 174 yards came on two exceptions against the Eagles.
Defense: In Week 1 against the Packers, the Lions had a DEFi score of 68.6 (D+). It’s the third-worst score of the season.
Fantasy: After the Lions’ loss to the Eagles, head coach Dan Campbell said he wanted to get David Montgomery more carries. What he really wanted to do was win games. Naturally, Montgomery saw his second-lowest carry count of the season with five. Meanwhile, Jahmyr Gibbs posted the single best fantasy outing of any player at any position this season with 55.4 points on 26 touches, his highest total since Week 3.