Four time Pro-Bowl centre Frank Ragnow announced his retirement from the NFL on Monday via his social media channels.
“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,” Ragnow posted to Instagram. “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.”
The former first rounder battled a variety of injuries throughout his career including a torn pectoral muscle, a fractured throat, and numerous toe and foot injuries.
Ragnow’s retirement comes as a massive blow to the Detroit Lions’ offensive line as replacing the 29 year old’s production will be a tall task for whomever is named his successor. The Lions have a few in house options, including rookie 2nd round draft pick Tate Ratledge, who GM Brad Holmes had nothing but praise for after taking him 57th overall this spring.
“Tough kid, great locker room guy. I think you guys are going to enjoy getting to know him. But he’s got a little bit more versatility. He rose more as the process went along because of his versatility that we were able to find out a little bit more about. I thought that he would fit in just like a glove here.”
Michael Niese, and Kingsley Eguakun are two other names to keep an eye on during camp as roster battles begin to heat up. The team also recently signed undrafted free agent centre Leif Fautanu out of Arizona State to compete for a depth spot on their roster as well.
Nevertheless, Ragnow casts a large shadow, as he was a respected locker room presence, and on field leader for a Lions squad that has Super Bowl aspirations in 2025. Selected to the second team All-Pro squad on 3 separate occasions (2020, 2023, 2024), Detroit will be hard pressed to find someone who can step in and anchor the O-Line right out of the gates.
The Lions open their 2025 NFL schedule on September 7th against the Green Packers.
Photo: Michael Barera. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.