Detroit seven-year veteran Frank Ragnow announced his retirement Monday.
In doing so, the Lions lost one of the NFL’s elite warriors, and one of the league’s premier offensive lines lost its anchor.
In a post to his Instagram account, Ragnow pointed to injuries as the reason for hanging up his cleats.
Ragnow said, “These past couple of months have been very trying as I’ve come to the realization that my football journey is ending and I’m officially retiring from the NFL. I’ve tried to convince myself that I’m feeling good but I’m not and it’s time to prioritize my health and my families future. I have given this team everything I have and I thought I had more to give, but the reality is I simply don’t. I have to listen to my body and this has been one of the hardest decisions of my life. The Lions organization has been absolutely incredible throughout this process and I can’t emphasize this enough how grateful I am for this team and all the fans. It was an absolute honor going to battle for you all.”
Detroit made Ragnow its first-round pick with the #20 overall selection in the 2018 NFL Draft. He had enjoyed a banner collegiate career at Arkansas, where he was a two-time All-American in 2016 and 2017.
As a rookie, Ragnow moved to left guard and started all 16 games. He moved back to center in 2019, starting 15 games while missing only one.
Ragnow started 14 games in 2020 and was a Pro-Bowl selection for the first time. The Lions rewarded him with a four-year contract extension worth $54 million.
In 2021, a toe injury forced him to miss all but four games. But Ragnow bounced back strong in 2022, starting 16 games and earning a second trip to the Pro Bowl.
In 2023, Ragnow started 15 of 17 regular-season games and all three of Detroit’s playoff games, as the Lions advanced to the NFC Championship Game. He started 16 of 17 games last season and the Lions’ lone postseason contest.
According to Pro Football Focus, Ragnow’s 91.7 PFF grade is #3 among NFL centers since 2018. His 93.6 run-blocking grade is also #3 for centers during that same time span.
Per PFF, the 29-year-old Ragnow gave up only six sacks in taking 5,541 career snaps. The four-time Pro-Bowler was the #1 run-blocking center in the NFL in 2023 and 2024, and he was graded the #1 overall center in 2023 and #2 in 2024.
As you can see in this Twitter post, Ragnow was loved by his teammates, who lauded him as a “legend,” the “greatest” and used goat emojis in replying to his retirement post.
Dr. Jimmy Liao, who provides medical analysis at LionsWire, pointed to the turf toe injury in 2021 as the likely culprit for Ragnow’s early retirement. Liao noted how it was “previously described as non-surgical and non-fixable.
During the 2023 season, Ragnow dealt with injuries to his left knee and ankle and a calf issue made him miss a Week 8 contest. After injuring the meniscus in his left knee in Week 13, he had arthroscopic surgery that caused him to miss one game.
Ragnow had a pectoral strain sideline him for a Week 3 game in 2024. He was on the injury report for a back injury in Week 15, but he still played in a 48-42 home loss vs. Buffalo.
Detroit general manager Brad Holmes is one of the NFL’s top 2-3 GMs, and he clearly planned for this potential scenario when he selected Tate Ratledge out of Georgia with the Lions’ second-round pick and #57 overall selection in the 2025 NFL Draft. He was used as the starting center at OTAs this past weekend.
The 24-year-old Ratledge played on two national championship teams at UGA in 2021 and 2022. He was a second-team All-American and a first-team All-SEC pick in 2023.
Ratledge garnered first-team All-American honors as a senior last season.
FanDuel has Detroit with +1000 (or 10/1) odds to win Super Bowl LX. Those are the fifth-shortest odds on the board behind the co- favorites, Baltimore and Philadelphia (+700), and Buffalo and Kansas City, who share the third-shortest odds (+750).
The Lions are +145 ‘chalk’ to win the NFC North Division. Green Bay (+280) has the next-shortest number, followed by Minnesota (+310) and Chicago (+470).
Detroit’s season win total is 10.5 (‘under’ -125, ‘over’ +105). The Lions’ adjusted win totals are 12.5 (‘under’ -400, ‘over’ +320) and 8.5 (‘over’ -280, ‘under’ +230). Their odds to make the playoffs at FanDuel are -200.
Detroit plays at Green Bay in its opener at 4:25 p.m. Eastern on Sept. 7. As of the morning of June 3, the Lions were listed at +1, +1.5 or +2 at most spots, and Circa had them as 2.5-point underdogs. The total was 49.5 points, while Circa had the best money-line payout for Detroit (+115).