Pro Bowl Lions TE Sam LaPorta carted off field after twisting knee vs. Vikings

Detroit Lions tight end Sam LaPorta left Sunday's season finale against the Minnesota Vikings on a cart with a knee injury in a potentially significant blow with the postseason looming.

LaPorta suffered the injury late in the second quarter with Detroit leading, 13-3. He caught a pass from Jared Goff, and his left foot planted into the turf on a tackle. His left knee buckled on the play, and he remained down on the turf for several moments after the tackle.

LaPorta was eventually able to limp off the field on his own before walking gingerly down the Detroit sideline. Moments later, he left the sideline on a cart to the Lions locker room. The Lions initially listed him as questionable with a knee injury before ruling him out early in the third quarter. The injury puts LaPorta's postseason in jeopardy with the Lions slated for a playoff game next week.

Was playing starters worth the risk for Lions?

LaPorta and other Lions starters played on Sunday with Detroit having already clinched a playoff berth and facing an outside chance of improving its postseason standing. The Lions entered Sunday having clinched no worse than the No. 3 seed in the NFC. With a win and losses later in the day by both the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles, the Lions could have moved up to the No. 2 seed, a position that would earn a second postseason home game in the event they'd advance to the divisional round.

The decision to play starters, of course, invites the risk of injury to key players. LaPorta would be a big loss if he was sidelined in the postseason.

As a rookie, LaPorta's emerged as one of the best pass-catching tight ends in football. He earned a Pro Bowl nod while tallying 81 catches for 860 yards with nine touchdowns through the first 17 weeks of the season.

Veteran Brock Wright is next up at tight end on Detroit's depth chart. He'd caught 13 passes for 91 yards and a touchdown heading into Week 18.