The issues for the Detroit Lions' offense in Week 11 against the Philadelphia Eagles can't be pinned on a single person. Multiple players played a part in the struggles, and Dan Campbell's lack of restraint on fourth down only exacerbated things.
Tight end Sam LaPorta emerged from Week 10 with a back issue. Things quickly escalated from him being out for the game against the Eagles to an IR stint that will cost him at least four games.
After the loss to Philadelphia, Campbell was asked if he expected to get LaPorta back this season.
"I’m hopeful, but I really don’t know", Campbell said.
LaPorta's absence against a tough Eagles' defense was noticeable in every way imaginable. Next to Jared Goff, Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jahmyr Gibbs, there may not be a more important player to the success of the Lions' offense.
Former player says what is abundantly clear about Sam LaPorta's importance
On Wednesday's episode of NFL Network's "Good Morning Football", the four co-hosts offered their assessments of where the Lions are after the Week 11 loss to the Eagles.
First up was Manti Te'o, who tapped into his experience as a former NFL linebacker to highlight the significance of LaPorta's absence.
"They were missing somebody that attracted a lot of attention, that defensive guys had to focus in on, and that was Sam LaPorta", Te'o said. "People don't understand the type of impact somebody like Sam LaPorta, beyond his abilities, has on a defense."
"Do you know who covers a tight end in a defense? It's either a safety, or a linebacker."
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Te'o then went into the schematic strategy Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio used to take away the middle of the field and force Goff to hold the ball longer. That freelancing "rover" between the hashes would ordinarily have to account for LaPorta in coverage, or pay the price if he didn't.
As Te'o also talked about, a linebacker (Te'o noted Eagles linebacker Nakobe Dean, who PFF credited with two pressures of Goff last Sunday night) would not be able to blitz as much if he has to cover LaPorta.
Everything is easier for the Lions' offense if a tight end who is a certifiable threat in the passing game is on the field. Brock Wright is not that "must account for" threat, and the offense's recent struggles reached a different low without LaPorta against the Eagles.
Lions fans already know it. But it was nice to see Te'o offer his perspective, with deeper details no one else on the "GMFB" panel would have offered, to further prove how impactful LaPorta's absence was against Philadelphia (and will be, for at least the next three games).