Detroit Lions Have a Big Reason to Celebrate as Season Closes In

Even though it’s still the offseason in the NFL, it sure does feel like fall is going to be here soon. Everywhere we look, there are already back-to-school displays, and fall items are arriving on a daily basis, too, which means that football season is just around the bend. For the Detroit Lions, there are high hopes that the team can still be major contenders, even with a new coaching staff.

Even though the Lions have lost both their longtime offensive and defensive coordinators, many of the players on the squad are still intact, and some would say that having key players is what matters most. Of course, the people doing the play-calling matter, but they’re not the ones on the field making those plays happen.

Now, with the 2025-26 season coming up in about two months, it’s an apt time to look at what players are back with the Lions and how they stand up in the greater NFL. Thankfully, for the Lions, they have some good news, because one of their players just got ranked one of the best in the league.

Lions Player Beats Out Travis Kelce

So, Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs is all the rage, since he’s dating Taylor Swift. He also happens to be a fantastic tight end. But, one Lions tight end is better.

In a Friday, July 11 feature, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler asked NFL executives, coaches and scouts to rank the top 10 tight ends in the NFL as the 2025-26 season approaches. “The top tier of this year’s tight ends list features multiple fresh names — and a new tight end king,” he notes in the piece, referring to Brock Bowers of the Las Vegas Raiders taking the top spot.

“(George Kittle) and Kelce will have gold jackets waiting for them after retirement,” he adds. “For now, they have tight ends within their respective divisions who are jockeying for position.”

So, let’s get to the Lions. Sam LaPorta was ranked No. 3 overall on the tally, only behind Bowers and Kittle. Last year, he was ranked No. 2, but No. 3 is still stellar.

“LaPorta’s production dipped in Year 2, when he finished with 60 catches for 726 yards and seven scores,” Fowler notes in the piece. “He fought through a knee issue — a hyperextension and bone bruise — that slowed momentum.”

Detroit Lions Tight End is ‘Valuable’

But, Flower adds that LaPorta is just as “valuable” as he was during the 2023-24 season, and “Detroit had several additional playmakers for whom to find targets. LaPorta is considered a complete tight end with elite feet, niftiness in the red zone and strength to compete every play.”

One NFC executive event called him a “stud,” stating, “[Lack of production is] not really a factor because Detroit has so many players they need to get the ball to. He’s a stud. Will be a cornerstone player for a long time.”

So, the Detroit Lions have some bragging rights in knowing that LaPorta is still the fantastic tight end that he’s been since joining the team. He may not be dating Swift, but he’s just as much a rock star as Kelce.