According to George Kittle: "[Sam] LaPorta is going to be fantastic."
Arguably, no rookie tight end has received more positive press emerging from spring practices than LaPorta, who should be an immediate contributor for the Lions. The departure of T.J. Hockenson left a huge hole in the offense, one of the best in the NFL for the position, but it appears the team has found a suitable replacement. Rookie tight ends have a notoriously long integration period but with little standing in his way for immediate production, and Jared Goff experienced at getting the ball to the position, LaPorta continues to trend higher in dynasty rookie drafts as the TE3 behind Dalton Kincaid and Michael Mayer. Kittle was effusive in his praise of the rookie and it will be no surprise if DLF's TE16 ends up pacing the position in 2023.