The Detroit Lions made it a point to add more competition to their tight end room during the first week of NFL free agency with new offensive coordinator Drew Petzing coming on board. Sports agent Mike McCartney announced on Friday that his client, veteran tight end Tyler Conklin, signed a one-year deal with the Lions.
The Lions saw their tight end room get ravaged by the injury bug last season, with Sam LaPorta and Brock Wright both going on injured reserve with significant injuries. Without those two guys, the Lions’ tight end room suffered mightily as Shane Zylstra, Anthony Firsker, and Ross Dwelley tried to fill that void, but it wasn’t enough.
With Conklin in the fold, Detroit won’t have to worry about a significant drop-off if LaPorta were to miss time in 2026, as he’s a receiving threat and a solid blocker. However, Conklin’s signing could knock Wright down the depth chart to TE3, which is what he likely didn’t have in the cards.
Brock Wright’s Future in Detroit Getting a Little Murky with Tyler Conklin Signing
The 27-year-old Wright appeared in 11 games (eight starts) last season despite being sidelined during the final month of the 2025 campaign with a neck/trachea injury. Before going down with the injury, he had 14 receptions (22 targets) for 108 yards and two touchdowns.
And as a blocker, Wright’s grades were on par with what he’s done throughout his career. He had 55.5 run-blocking and a 53.2 pass-blocking grades, per Pro Football Focus. To his credit, Wright’s run blocking has improved over his time in Detroit, going from a 49.3 in 2021 to 55.5 this past season.
However, with Petzing calling the shots, he likely wants a TE2 who is not only effective as a blocker but also can be a threat in the passing game. Enter Conklin. Last season with the Los Angeles Chargers, Conklin didn’t see much work in the passing game – seven receptions (10 targets) for 101 yards across 13 games (five starts), thanks to the emergence of rookie Oronde Gadsden II.
That said, he still got some opportunities to be utilized as a blocker last season. According to PFF, Conklin had a 73.6 pass blocking grade (six snaps) and a not-so-good 46.8 run blocking grade (71 snaps).
Before joining the Chargers last year, Conklin was a solid receiving threat in three seasons with the New York Jets, posting 70 receptions (246 targets) for 1,622 yards and seven touchdowns. His numbers are night and day in comparison to Wright, who has recorded 70 receptions (93 targets) for 632 yards and 11 TDs for his entire NFL career.
Conklin is an upgrade over Wright as a pass-catcher, which won’t help his case to win the TE2 job. He offers more upside as a pass-blocker, too, despite not having many opportunities, recording at least a 66 grade or higher in three straight seasons.
In fact, Wright’s best season as a pass blocker was in 2023 with a 64.0 grade, where he only allowed three pressures in 51 opportunities. Wright also has the slight edge over Conklin in the run blocking department over the last two seasons, which will help his cause.
Despite that, the Lions felt like they needed to shake things up in that room. Nonetheless, it will be interesting to see how the tight end battle plays out behind LaPorta.Â
If Conklin locks up the TE2 job, it will put Wright in a tough spot, who will have to battle it out with Zach Horton and Thomas Gordon. Wright is also entering his final year with the club and will hit free agency after the 2026 season.