Typically, a 60-catch season with over 700 yards and seven touchdowns wouldn't land as all that disappointing for a second-year NFL tight end. But when you set the records Sam LaPorta did and finish as the TE1 in fantasy football as a rookie, anything less lands as an underachievement.
Clearly impacted by a couple nagging injuries early last season, LaPorta was outside the top-20 fantasy tight ends through Week 7 as he totaled just 14 receptions and one touchdown through six games.
From there, LaPorta had 46 catches for 502 yards and six touchdowns over his final 10 games last season. Narrowing to fantasy terms, he was the TE6 from Week 8-Week 17 (or Week 18) regardless of scoring format (full-PPR, 0.5-point PPR, standard).
From Week 15-17, the playoffs in many fantasy leagues, LaPorta was the TE1 (standard and 0.5-point PPR) or the TE2 (full-point PPR).
That kind of finish is something fantasy managers need to take notice of when looking toward next season.
Sam LaPorta's fantasy outlook is on a clear upswing for 2025
Mike Clay recently released a list of 41 observations he made while doing ESPN's early fantasy projections for 2025. He had a note regarding LaPorta.
"After pacing all tight ends in fantasy points as a rookie in 2023, Sam LaPorta fell to eighth in 2024. His receiving line dipped across the board (from 86-889-10 on 121 targets to 60-726-7 on 84 targets), though it's notable that he did get back on track to some extent after a slow start. After averaging 2.8 targets (11% team share) and 7.1 fantasy PPG during his first six games, LaPorta leapt to 6.7 targets (21% share) and 13.6 fantasy PPG in his final 11 (including the playoffs). Those numbers are near identical to his rookie season and closer to what we should expect moving forward."
Note: ESPN's default fantasy football scoring is full-PPR, so that's where Clay's numbers and rankings come from.
LaPorta fell from 86 receptions, 889 yards and 10 touchdowns as a rookie to 60 catches, 726 yards and seven touchdowns last year. Those catch and yardage totals feel like the high and low ends for him, and along that line from Week 8-18 last season his 17-game projection was 78 receptions for 853 yards with 10 touchdowns. Those numbers, with some room to spare, would have made him the TE4 in full PPR last season (through Week 17).
LaPorta may never finish as the TE1 in fantasy football again. But a top-10 finish feeling as disappointing as it did says it all, and a return to the top-five looks pretty likely in 2025.
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