It’s been 67 years since the Lions last won a championship. Longer than the Super Bowl has even existed. Since then? No parades. No confetti. Just generational trauma passed down through Honolulu blue bloodlines. But here’s the twist – for once, the talent isn’t the problem. Jared Goff’s rebirth is real. Aidan Hutchinson’s beard is terrifying. Amon-Ra St. Brown is doing slot damage like it’s 2013 Julian Edelman. And right at the heart of it all is Sam LaPorta, the Iowa tight end turned Motor City superstar.
So when LaPorta hopped on The Jim Rome Show this week, and the host asked what it would mean to win it all in Detroit, he didn’t blink. “Absolutely diehard fans,” LaPorta said. “It’s a great time to be in Detroit. All four organizations are playing at a really high level…to win the big one for our hometown. It would be amazing I think that the city deserves a parade. We haven’t had one in a couple years for any of these sports teams So why not us?” That’s not just a soundbite. That’s the tight end of the Detroit Lions saying – out loud – that this team is built to finish the job. And he might just be the guy to help do it.
LaPorta became the first tight end in NFL history to record at least 600 yards and 6 receiving touchdowns in each of his first two seasons. Only three other tight ends have ever posted 1,500+ receiving yards and 15+ TDs across their first two years. His 146 receptions? Most by any tight end through two seasons – ever. And now? He’s healthy. No rehab. No limitations. Just full-speed prep for Year 3. “Looking ahead to this year, just continue to polish things off in the run game and pass game,” he said about the upcoming season.
“This city deserves a parade.”@Lions TE Sam LaPorta on playing in Detroit. pic.twitter.com/ASPERmmS4y
— Jim Rome (@jimrome) July 17, 2025
But what separates him now is his mindset. “Start to see the game from the quarterback’s perspective,” he said. “Not just knowing what I’m doing on the field, but what other people are doing as well. Just seeing the big picture.” LaPorta isn’t just playing tight end anymore. He’s thinking like a QB. And when your tight end is on the same mental wavelength as Jared Goff? That’s when the offense starts cooking at playoff-level consistency.
Even Amon-Ra is noticing the shift. “He’s making plays out there every day,” St. Brown said during OTAs. “He’s gonna have a big year.” The league agrees. ESPN’s annual tight end rankings just dropped, and Sam LaPorta came in No. 3, behind George Kittle and Brock Bowers. He jumped Travis Kelce. He jumped Mark Andrews. An AFC scout summed it up: “He doesn’t have a lot of weaknesses…If you want a complete tight end, he fits the bill.” So yes, Detroit – your tight end just declared the city deserves a parade. And he might be good enough to throw it. But here’s the thing: even parades need planners. And in Detroit, the only man handling it all is Dan Campbell.
Dan Campbell’s new era begins without his right and left hands
In Detroit, the man drawing up the route is head coach Dan Campbell. Only now, he’s doing it without his two top lieutenants. Offensive coordinator Ben Johnson? Gone to Chicago. Defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn? Out the door. For the first time in his tenure, Campbell is flying without the guys who helped transform the Lions from NFL meme to NFC menace.
CBS Sports ranked him the fifth-best head coach entering 2025. That’s ahead of guys like Kyle Shanahan and Mike Tomlin. But now comes the real test. Can Campbell maintain the culture and production with new voices in the room? He’s not backing down. “Just everything about it was the right fit for me. From the ownership to the city to the field, the location, the fans, just, man, the blue-collar attitude of this city, it’s just perfect,” Campbell said in a radio appearance. “It fits me like a glove.”
And the city believes him. Because Detroit’s never been about perfection – it’s been about perseverance. And now more than ever, the Lions are walking that line between dream and destiny. If Sam LaPorta continues evolving into a full-field mismatch, if Goff stays clean behind that loaded O-line, and if Campbell keeps the wheels from falling off…That parade LaPorta mentioned? It might not just be a quote. It might be real. And Detroit’s long wait just might be over.
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