The Detroit Lions signed tight Brock Wright as an undrafted free agent in 2021. He made the team, and has been a valued contributor ever since. The Lions proved how much they valued him when they matched the three-year, $12 million offer sheet the San Francisco 49ers gave him last offseason.
Lions head coach Dan Campbell was a third-round draft pick by the New York Giants in 1999. But he played 10 seasons in the NFL not because he was a star tight end. He did it by being a player who did the dirty work and battled for his place day-in, day-out, year-in, year-out.
Wright is on a similar career path to his head coach, with 50 career receptions now into his fourth season. He has seven catches in four games this season, but he has played half of the Lions' offensive snaps. Entering Week 5, he is Pro Football Focus' 46th-highest graded tight end. His receiving (62.2) and pass blocking grades (65.1) are top-35 at the position so far this season.
Brock Wright named Lions' hidden gem so far this season
Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report has named every team's biggest hidden gem at the quarter-point of the 2024 season. The Lions have a few potential candidates, but Wright is a pretty easy and very solid choice.
"The Detroit Lions have no shortage of offensive stars. From Jared Goff and Amon-Ra St. Brown to Jahmyr Gibbs, David Montgomery, Jameson Williams and Sam LaPorta, Detroit's offense is loaded with stars and recent high draft selections.
"Tight end Brock Wright is an outlier. The 2021 undrafted free agent has largely flown under the radar in Detroit, even if he's caught the attention of other teams. To keep Wright, the Lions had to match a three-year, $12 million offer from the San Francisco 49ers this offseason."
"While LaPorta is Detroit's top pass-catcher at the tight end position, Wright still fills a valuable role for the team. He's a serviceable, though not elite, blocker who can give Goff an extra target on occasion."
"While Wright has just seven catches for 49 yards this season, he's played 50 percent of the offensive snaps and remains an important, if overlooked, part of the game plan."
Wright will always be overlooked amid all the talent around him in the Lions' offense, not to mention simply being the No. 2 tight end behind Sam LaPorta and not seeing a lot of targets. But Campbell can, and surely does, look at Wright and see a lot of who he was as a player.