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Sam LaPorta Looks Good During OTA Practice on Thursday
Detroit Lions tight end Sam LaPorta (back) looked good and was moving around well at OTA practice on Thursday after he sat out of the first open practice last week, according to Tim Twentyman of DetroitLions.com. It's a good sign for LaPorta, who is coming off back surgery to fix a herniated disc that forced him to miss the final eight games of the 2025 season. The 25-year-old former second-rounder in 2023 out of the University of Iowa was the No. 1 fantasy TE in his rookie year, catching 86 passes for 889 yards and 10 touchdowns on 120 targets in 17 regular-season games. LaPorta took a slight step back in 2024 with a 60-726-7 line in 16 starts, before catching just 40 passes for 489 yards and three scores a year ago in nine starts. It won't cost nearly as much to secure LaPorta's services in fantasy as a low-end TE1 after his injury in 2025, and with the situation not much different in Detroit than in his first two years, there is clear bounce-back potential in his fourth year in the NFL if he can stay healthy. LaPorta is ranked as RotoBaller's No. 9 TE for the 2026 campaign.
Source: DetroitLions.com - Tim Twentyman
Source: DetroitLions.com - Tim Twentyman
Sam LaPorta Could be Excellent Buy-Low Candidate for Risk-Tolerant Managers
Detroit Lions tight end Sam LaPorta (back) burst onto the scene as a rookie in 2023 and immediately became a high-end TE1 in fantasy, catching 86 of 120 targets for 889 yards and 10 touchdowns in 17 regular-season games to finish as the overall TE1 in half-PPR scoring. Unfortunately, the 25-year-old former second-rounder (34th overall) out of Iowa took a step back in 2024 (60-726-7 line as the TE7 overall), and he played in a career-low nine games in 2025 due to a disc injury in his back that required surgery. Despite the lost year last season, LaPorta had a career-high 54.3 yards per game and 12.2 yards per catch before being shut down for the year. He also had an 81.6% catch rate on 49 targets in nine games. It's obvious that LaPorta's dynasty stock is down coming off back surgery, and although he's in Detroit's high-powered offense, there are still plenty of mouths to feed. LaPorta is expected to be healthy for training camp and the start of the 2026 regular season. With 20 touchdowns in three seasons in a high-scoring offense, savvy fantasy managers should look to buy low on LaPorta now that his value is at an all-time low. At RotoBaller, he's still ranked as the TE6 in dynasty formats.
Source: Pro Football Reference
Source: Pro Football Reference
