TE Sam LaPorta of the Detroit Lions is “likely to miss some time” due to a knee injury.
Due to a knee injury, the rookie tight end for the Detroit Lions is deemed questionable to return.
Sam LaPorta, a rookie tight end, hurt his knee in the second quarter of the Detroit Lions’ regular season finale against the Minnesota Vikings. LaPorta, moving on his own initiative, first moved beneath the blue tent. But after spending a few minutes there, LaPorta was led to the changing area. It is officially dubious if he should go back.
UPDATE: LaPorta will now play the rest of the game as an out.
For the Lions, LaPorta was having a fantastic season. The rookie tight end had nine touchdowns and 860 yards on 81 receptions going into Week 18. LaPorta added five more receptions for 29 yards and a touchdown on Sunday. He broke the franchise record for the most receptions by a tight end in a season in the first quarter of play.
Hopefully, this injury isn’t as serious as it appears, but it will surely lead to discussion about whether the Lions were wise to start players against the Vikings. If the Cowboys and Eagles lost and Detroit won, there was still a slim chance that they would finish as the NFC’s two seed. But the third seed was the much more probable one.
Coach Dan Campbell emphasized earlier in the week that they would play his starters as long as the two-seed was still in play.
With TE2 Brock Wright missing the last three games due to injury, the Lions will be severely shorthanded at the position if LaPorta is unable to participate in the playoffs the following week.
This narrative is evolving. More information when it becomes available.
Lions post-match injury report: Two players had bad news
The Detroit Lions defeated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 31–23 at home to go to the NFC Championship game the following Sunday. Regretfully, head coach Dan Campbell stated following the game that it is unlikely that two players from the Lions offense will travel to San Francisco to participate in that game.
With a broken forearm, tight end Brock Wright—who made a crucial catch and run in the victory on Sunday—will be sidelined. Later in the game, Wright first reported to Nolan Bianchi of the Detroit News that he had fractured his arm. During his press conference following the game, Campbell verified the injury.
Jonah Jackson, the starting left guard, suffered a knee injury in the first half of the game, thus Campbell also had bad news. Jackson never showed up again.
Regarding the injuries, Campbell remarked, “it doesn’t look real good for next week.” But we’ll see, he continued.
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For the balance of the game, Jackson was replaced by Kayode Awosika. He is expected to start in place of the 49ers.
Regarding Wright and tight end, the Lions have youngster Sam LaPorta behind Anthony Firkser, who appeared to have fully recovered from his knee injury sustained in Week 18.Shane Zylstra and James Mitchell, two reserve players, are on injured reserve. Since there aren’t any tight ends on the practice squad right now, expect the Lions to add one throughout the week.
