The Detroit Lions and Baltimore Ravens will meet on Monday Night Football in what will be a crucial early season for Detroit as it looks to build on the momentum from its blowout victory against the Chicago Bears in Week 2.
While it wouldn't be outrageous to suggest that this could be a potential Super Bowl preview if the two sides live up to expectations, Lions star tight end Sam LaPorta seems much more concerned with not allowing the past to repeat itself, as the last meeting between the two was a lopsided 38-6 loss for the Motor City's team.
During LaPorta's time with the media on Thursday afternoon, the All-Pro warned his teammates against falling into the same trap as they did in 2023 when Baltimore and Detroit last faced off.
Sam LaPorta Warns Lions Teammates Against Slow Start vs. Ravens
For those who don't remember the matchup as well as LaPorta, the Lions found themselves down 21 points after running just six offensive plays. While the veteran TE knows comebacks are possible, especially against the Ravens after they blew a big lead in Week 1, he reiterated the importance of getting off to a faster start this time around.
"We have to start faster. I don’t want to say that we hit the panic button too early. We definitely were a little frantic, but we know that we’re a great team. We were a good team back then as well, LaPorta said, via Eric Woodyard of ESPN.com. A 21-point deficit isn't the end of the world. You saw the Bills come back from, what was it, like, 15 points in 10 minutes the other day against them? Obviously, different year and everything, but it can be done against great teams. We know we can do that if we find ourselves in that position again."
One way to get off to a better start this time around would be keeping Jared Goff upright in the pocket. In Detroit's loss to the Ravens in 2023, Baltimore sacked Goff five times and held the Lions to just 5/16 on third down. As fans saw in the 2025 season opener, allowing pressure in the face of Goff all game long is not a recipe for success.
It goes without saying that a stronger start would prevent LaPorta and company from needing to claw back from a three-touchdown deficit again in this year's matchup with Baltimore. Having enjoyed so much success as a team since that game should only help the Lions keep their composure if, God forbid, a similar scenario plays out this Monday night at M&T Bank Stadium.
For what it's worth, LaPorta is doing his part to make sure that the story has a different ending for the Lions this time around.