Dan Campbell said "I don't know" about Sam LaPorta's hip, which is the most honest answer in the history of fantasy football, and the most terrifying one.
"It flared up a little bit, it's a little aggravated. But we feel good long-term about him."
Dan Campbell, Lions head coach, on Sam LaPorta's hip injury, August 20, 2026
The Injury That Changes Everything (or Doesn't)
So here is the situation. Sam LaPorta, the 25-year-old tight end who was supposed to be the most valuable fantasy tight end in football after a fully herniated disc took his entire 2025 season and left him with a career-low 40 receptions for 489 yards and three touchdowns in just nine games, just got his hip flared up in practice. Missed multiple sessions. No timeline. Dan Campbell's official diagnosis was the two words that every fantasy manager lives in fear of: "I don't know." (ESPN, FFToday, AP)
The Lions are opening at home against the New Orleans Saints on September 13. LaPorta's bye is Week 6, which means he is playing in that opener or he is not. There is no in-between. If he is not, you just drafted a TE7 who is on ice, and the whole TE hierarchy you built your board around just got a little bit weirder.
This is not the first time this season has tried to kill LaPorta's value. Last year it was the herniated disc, a full surgical repair in November, a season-ending surgery that he was told would be routine except it wasn't. This year it is the hip. The back is supposed to be fine, no lingering pain, per Campbell. The hip is the new problem. The human body is a magnificent, unreliable engine and LaPorta's has been running on fumes and optimism for two straight offsea
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