Who Should I Start? Sam LaPorta or Harold Fannin Jr.

Sunday, January 19, 12:27 AM

Detroit Lions tight end Sam LaPorta caught six of his seven targets for 51 yards and a touchdown during Saturday's Divisional Round loss to the Washington Commanders. His touchdown came at the end of an impressive offensive play in which Jared Goff scrambled, threw while being tackled, and connected with LaPorta, who used his left hand to haul in the football and secure the catch. It was a valiant effort to give the Lions their only receiving touchdown of the game, but it wasn't enough. Detroit fell to Washington by two scores, ending their season shy of a Super Bowl berth once again. With that said, this Lions team continues to show plenty of promise ahead of the 2025 campaign. LaPorta himself was riding a hot stretch when the season ended, catching 38 passes for 392 yards and five touchdowns over his last seven contests. He should continue to rank as a mid-range TE1 ahead of next summer's fantasy drafts.

Tuesday, May 27, 1:26 PM

The Cleveland Plain Dealer's Lance Reisland suggests that the Cleveland Browns need rookie third-round tight end Harold Fannin Jr.'s big-play abilities in their offense in 2025. Fannin, who stands at 6-foot-3, 240 pounds, had a whopping 117 catches for 1,555 yards and 10 touchdowns in his final college season in 2024 at Bowling Green. He consistently created separation with elite route-running and reliable hands, but the question is whether Fannin can continue to do that consistently against better competition in the NFL. The 20-year-old has excellent yards-after-the catch skills, which the Browns desperately need, and is a matchup nightmare. There's a lot to like about Fannin's pure skills as a receiving tight end, but he's on the small side for a TE and will need to work on his blocking skills before he has any chance of unseating David Njoku as the team's primary pass-catching tight end.