Lions TE Sam LaPorta delivered 4 receptions for 53 yards in Monday night's win over the Seahawks. That line doesn't stand out immediately, but his 4 targets marked a 22.2% share of QB Jared Goff's total pass attempts. The yardage marked a season high. And he tied WR Amon-Ra St. Brown for second-most routes (behind only WR Jameson Williams) despite spraining an ankle in Week 3.
LaPorta practiced in full Friday and Saturday, and carried no game status on the final injury report. So he clearly escaped significant damage with the ankle sprain. But it was good to get confirmation from his usage.
Of course, his season production remains disappointing -- especially vs. his high ADP. You can blame a few factors outside LaPorta's control.
The Lions rank just 17th in pass attempts through four weeks, compared with sixth in rushes. They have three more run plays than pass attempts so far.
WR Jameson Williams has also dramatically increased his playing time and role vs. the previous two years.
HC Dan Campbell also previously mentioned how they lightened LaPorta's load at the start of the year to make sure he didn't overdo it after an August hamstring injury.
QB Jared Goff is averaging 31 pass attempts per game, but 55 attempts in the Week 2 loss to Tampa Bay is inflating that. He has averaged just 23 passes across Detroit's three victories.
Goff averaged 35.6 and 34.5 attempts per game the previous two years, under OC Ben Johnson. So expect more passing volume the rest of the way. But also don't be surprised when more low-volume games show up.
Ultimately, LaPorta's fantasy-scoring issues are mitigated some by the general scoring struggles at TE. Keep rolling with him as your No. 1 if you have him. And consider trying to buy-low if you're in need.
A Week 5 bye might knock LaPorta's price down even further. It should also allow time for the TE to get healthier and the offensive plan to potentially leverage him more.
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