Sam LaPorta 2025 Fantasy Football Preview, Predictions, And Rankings

Sam LaPorta fantasy football outlook for 2025 projects him as a top-tier TE in Detroit's high-powered offense. Where does he rank in PPR formats?

Detroit Lions tight end Sam LaPorta (87) celebrates after scoring a touchdown during the second quarter against the Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium. | Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

Sam LaPorta has quickly cemented himself as one of fantasy football’s most reliable tight ends, producing 17 touchdowns in his first two seasons despite battling through injuries. With the Detroit Lions leaning on him as both a red-zone weapon and a downfield threat, LaPorta enters 2025 as a top-tier fantasy TE with the upside to push for 200+ PPR points.

Sam LaPorta, Detroit Lions

LaPorta had an active role in the passing game over his final two seasons at Iowa, but he offered minimal scoring. His blocking didn’t look NFL-ready, but he started with a high floor in his route running. He understands how to get open, with some fight in his game after catching the ball.

Over four seasons in college, LaPorta caught 153 passes for 1,786 yards and five touchdowns, highlighted by his final two years (53/670/3 and 58/657/1). He gained over 100 yards in two (7/122 and 9/101) of his last 13 games. In 2022, LaPorta had a floor of five catches in seven of his 12 starts.

In his rookie season, the Lions gave LaPorta all that he could handle, and he responded in a big way. Over 20 games (including the postseason), LaPorta caught 107 of his 147 targets for 1,065 yards and 11 touchdowns. He scored 10 touchdowns at home while making more significant plays on the road (11.0 yards per catch – 8.9 in Detroit). 

Confirmed: Sam LaPorta is still really good 👀
pic.twitter.com/GjRNMHp6JA

— SleeperNFL (@SleeperNFL) August 5, 2025

His best production came in Week 3 (8/84/1), Week 13 (9/140/1), and Week 15 (5/36/3). The Lions gave him six targets or fewer in nine of his 16 games in the regular season. LaPorta finished first in tight end scoring (239.30 in PPR formats).

Last year, Laporta was a shell of himself over the Lions’ first six games (14/224/1 on 17 targets) while having shorter snaps in Week 3 and Week 6 due to ankle and shoulder injuries. Detroit gave him twice as many targets (34) over the next seven weeks (one missed game), leading to 22 catches for 221 yards and four touchdowns. 

Laporta regained his 2023 over his final five games (7/111, 4/43/1, 6/64/1, 7/63, and 6/51/1), leading to 16.23 FPPG in PPR formats. 

Sam LaPorta 2025 Fantasy Football Outlook, Projections, And Rankings

His slide in stats (60/726/7) was tied to fewer targets (83 – 120 in 2023), and Detroit using Laporta on longer pass plays (12.1 YPC – 10.3 in 2023). He has 17 touchdowns over 33 games in the regular season. Laporta is the fourth-ranked tight end according to ADP this summer, with much more favorable price points. I expect 200+ fantasy points in PPR formats (70/800/8) while still having underlying upside.

LaPorta is currently the TE7 in our 2025 PPR Rankings.