The deal makes Hutchinson one of the highest-paid non-quarterbacks and is the latest in a flurry of extensions the Lions front office has signed. Before Hutchinson, the Lions extended wide receiver Jameson Williams just before the season kicked off. Williams' signing was a little unexpected, as many considered him a prime candidate to be the odd-man out, given there's only so much money to go around.
Players the Lions have extended recently:
QB Jared Goff ($212M)
RB David Montgomery ($18.25M)
WR Amon-Ra St. Brown (120.01M)
WR Jameson Williams ($83M)
RT Penei Sewell ($112M)
LT Taylor Decker ($60M)
Edge Aidan Hutchinson ($180M)
DT Alim McNeill ($97M)
S Kerby Joseph ($86M) — Colton Pouncy (@colton_pouncy) October 29, 2025
The burden of the odd man out distinction may now fall on tight end Sam LaPorta, and it's understandable why. The TE position isn't considered a premium position like QB or pass rusher, and isn't the most difficult to replace with a later round draft pick. Especially with schools such as Iowa, where LaPorta played, being a TE factory. Not to mention how loaded the Lions' offense is already, priority may fall on extending defensive players like safety Brian Branch or linebacker Jack Campbell.
That doesn't mean LaPorta is a bad player. In fact, quite the opposite. He might be too good to keep financially. The Lions should try to find room, anyway, and keep LaPorta long-term because he's also too good to let go.
How much could LaPorta get paid?
Because TEs aren't a premium position, they don't get paid nearly as much as top WRs do. According to Sportrac, the highest-paid TE is San Francisco 49ers' George Kittle, who in 2025 signed a four-year $76.4 million deal. That is $400,000 above a similar deal signed by Arizona Cardinals' Trey McBride weeks earlier.
Currently, LaPorta can't be extended until after this season. A deal for LaPorta would likely be above this, given how the market is typically set by the most recent guy to sign, whether in total numbers or through guarantees. Like Hutchinson in comparison to Green Bay Packers' Micah Parsons, LaPorta's deal could total out lower than Kittle and McBride's, but his guarantees could be higher.
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McBride makes for a good baseline for LaPorta. The Pro Bowler may be two years older, but he's still young at a position that tends to age well. McBride's deal is backloaded, with the biggest cap hits coming in the final two years of his deal. It's an easy pill for the Cardinals to swallow, given how much the salary cap increases each year and how little they have invested in other positions. LaPorta could be poised to be the first TE to eclipse $80 million on a deal, and money is already tight for the Lions.
The timing of a potential signing would matter. Luckily, Las Vegas Raiders' star TE Brock Bowers won't be eligible to sign his extension until after the 2026 season. That does provide some leeway, as Bowers will likely shatter records with his deal. The caveat to that is if the Lions don't get a LaPorta deal done, he'll be a free agent after 2026, so Bowers' deal and competition could elevate LaPorta's price tag well above $80 million.
The case for keeping LaPorta in a Lions' uniform
Drafted in the second round in the 2023 NFL Draft, LaPorta was among the four controversial draft picks the Lions made at the time. LaPorta quickly proved doubters wrong with a record-setting rookie year, where he broke the record for receptions by a rookie TE with 89, which was since broken the following season by Bowers. His 889 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns led to him being selected to the Pro Bowl and Second-Team All-Pro.
LaPorta's second season didn't match that same high, but he still amassed 726 receiving yards and seven TDs. He also made an extremely impressive TD catch in the Lions' playoff loss to the Washington Commanders, when it felt like no one else on the team could make a play.
This season, LaPorta looks more like his rookie self. He currently has 339 yards and two TDs. Entering Week 9, LaPorta is the third-highest graded TE on Pro Football Focus at 78.9. However, his total number of snaps (402) far surpasses the two guys ahead of him: Carolina Panthers' Mitchell Evans (183) and Buffalo Bills' Jackson Hawes (194), giving him an argument for being the league's best TE right now. TEs can be replaced through the draft, but it'd be tough to find someone who can produce at LaPorta's level right away, both in receiving and in blocking, and that can hamper a contender.
