With the trade deadline looming, the Detroit Lions are reportedly getting calls about the potential availability of All-Pro tight end Sam LaPorta. According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, teams are under the impression that the Lions are not interested in making a deal, and would instead prefer to keep him and reach a long-term contract extension.
LaPorta is in the final year of his rookie contract, and both he and the team have been open about wanting to sign an extension. Unfortunately, reports have surfaced that the team and LaPorta’s agent have reached a stalemate, leading to some very public venting of frustration from LaPorta.
“I think the combination of getting your heartstrings twisted as well as the violent sport we play—it sucks,” LaPorta said on the Pardon My Take Podcast. “It’s disappointing that you go out there every week and you bear the risk of getting hurt. Like last year, whatever it was, Week 9, Week 10, I break my (expletive) back for this team. And then I’m going out there this year, and I’m ballin’, and maybe they’re just not showing the love.”
LaPorta spoke with the media just days after the podcast aired, wanting to add further context to his appearance.
“I guess I wouldn’t expect anybody else to really even care, but, emotionally, for me and my family, it’s an important thing for us. We want to have stability,” LaPorta explained. “We’re excited; in the upcoming months, we’re going to have our first kid, me and my wife. We’re going to welcome our baby girl into the world in Metro Detroit. We want to be here with the Lions.
“And I guess I’m getting emotional about it, but in the grand scheme of things, it’s really a business. And you have to respect what the front office is doing, because they’re the ones calling the shots. They’re the ones that brought me in. It’s my first team. They’ve been nothing but supportive of me and my career.”
Lions coach Dan Campbell said LaPorta’s contract situation—and his comments—hasn’t distracted the team because they know who he is as a person and teammate, but Campbell didn’t directly address the situation or the team’s desires beyond the playing field.
General manager Brad Holmes has previously expressed a desire to reach a long-term deal with LaPorta, but has yet to address the media since reports of stalled negotiations. While not definitive, this report from Fowler suggests the Lions haven’t given up on getting a deal done.
For more information, you can follow along with all the Lions trade rumors and transactions in our tracker.
