It's been written and said over and over, but Sam LaPorta immediately became the most talented tight end on the Detroit Lions' roster the moment they took him in the second round of April's draft. It was only a matter of him earning the starting job, and he wasted no time asserting himself.
In Week 1 against the Kansas City Chiefs, LaPorta played 83 percent of the offensive snaps in a prominent role right away. He snagged all five of his targets, for 39 yards (11 yards after the catch, per Pro Football Reference). Those five receptions were tied for third-most among all tight ends for the week, and of course led rookie tight ends.
LaPorta was going to bring something to the table as a pass catcher right away. He also did some nice work as a blocker against the Chiefs, which head coach Dan Campbell (a former tight end who made his hay in the NFL as a blocker) noticed.
Dan Campbell said that last night was some of the best blocking he's seen from Sam LaPorta, even through camp.
— Kory E. Woods (@KoryEWoods) September 8, 2023
Sam LaPorta was everything the Lions could've hoped for in Week 1 vs. Chiefs
As a sign of how well LaPorta did as a blocker against Kansas City, Lions' offensive line coach Hank Fraley noted (via Justin Rogers of The Detroit News).
"Hats off to (tight ends) coach (Steve) Heiden, but really LaPorta has come in here and he's really taken the playbook by storm. He's all ears," Lions offensive line coach Hank Fraley said. "...Coach Heiden has done a great job with that in the run game and stuff. Shoot, that's what he did when he played. He had to run-block. He didn't catch too many balls, let's be honest. So, he can teach 'em. He did a great job. People who have been around here, even in the past, our tight ends, we ask a lot of them in the pass game, protection, run game. He's done a great job with it.""
LaPorta was used all over the field against the Chiefs, lining up out wide 13 times (according to Pro Football Focus, 40 percent of his passing snaps). Along with what was easily seen in his run blocking, his PFF pass blocking grade (80.4) was the second-best among tight ends in Week 1.
The Lions vaulted LaPorta into a big role right away because he earned it. But he was everything they could have hoped he'd be, immediately, in Week 1.