Lions, Sam LaPorta halt contract talks; tight end on path to 2027 free agency
The short version
- The Lions and Sam LaPorta ended extension talks after four weeks of negotiations, ESPN reported.
- Without a new deal, LaPorta is positioned to become an unrestricted free agent in 2027.
- Detroit could use the franchise tag; it last did so in 2018 on Ezekiel Ansah.
- LaPorta has 14 catches for 144 yards and a touchdown through three games of 2026.
- All four tight ends on the Lions roster are due to become free agents next offseason.
Extension negotiations between Detroit and Sam LaPorta broke off after four weeks of the season, setting up potential 2027 free agency for the Pro Bowl tight end.
The Detroit Lions and tight end Sam LaPorta have ended negotiations on a contract extension, ESPN reported Sunday, a development that points the 2023 second-round pick toward free agency in 2027. The two sides had worked toward a deal through the opening four weeks of the season without reaching one.
According to ESPN's Ian Rapoport, a final round of talks on Friday and Saturday came up short, and the parties agreed to table the matter so LaPorta could concentrate on football. Rapoport wrote that any new contract would now wait until the offseason, and that an agreement appears improbable given the failure to complete one during the season's first month.
A resumption later this year has not been ruled out. Rapoport noted that Detroit has a track record of finishing extensions during the season, citing defensive tackle Alim McNeill as a precedent, and left open the chance of another attempt at a deal that would place LaPorta among the NFL's best-paid players at his position.
General manager Brad Holmes has said repeatedly that he wants LaPorta in Detroit for years to come, and he has publicly backed new deals for the club's 2023 draft class. Running back Jahmyr Gibbs (three years, $67.5 million) and linebacker Jack Campbell (four years, $81 million) have already signed, while LaPorta and safety Brian Branch are both working back from season-ending injuries.
If no extension is reached, the franchise tag gives Detroit a way to keep LaPorta off the open market. The club has not applied the tag since 2018, when it went to edge defender Ezekiel Ansah. Spotrac listed the tight end tag at $15 million last offseason, and current projections put next year's figure near $17.5 million.
The market for young tight ends moved sharply upward this year. Green Bay's Tucker Kraft, who shares agent Jack Bechta with LaPorta, agreed to a four-year, $75 million extension in the summer. Las Vegas tight end Michael Mayer signed for three years and $45 million, and Atlanta's Kyle Pitts landed a three-year, $54 million extension.
On the field, LaPorta has rediscovered his form through three games of the 2026 season, catching 14 passes for 144 yards and a touchdown while showing real growth as a blocker. A back injury held him to nine games in 2025, when he finished with 40 receptions for 489 yards and three scores.
His broader record includes a Pro Bowl rookie campaign in 2023 with 86 catches for 889 yards and 10 touchdowns, followed by 60 receptions for 726 yards and seven touchdowns in 2024. Detroit's depth chart at the position faces wider uncertainty beyond this season, with Brock Wright and Tyler Conklin also on track to be unrestricted free agents and second-year Jackson Meeks lined up as an exclusive-rights free agent, a designation that leaves the Lions in control of whether he returns.
The Lions continue their season Sunday with a visit to the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium. Kickoff is set for 8:20 p.m. EDT, and the game airs on NBC.
