DFN Mailbag: Frank Ragnow retirement edition

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There’s obviously a lot on the minds of Detroit Lions fans following Monday’s retirement announcement from Frank Ragnow. So, I wanted to open the mailbag to address the topic.

Justin: Before I get to your questions, I'd like to address a general one many have had about the salary cap ramifications.

Ragnow signed a four-year, $54 million extension in 2021 and had two years left on the deal. What remains on the contract is $8.4 million in dead money (a $1.2 million prorated portion of his $6 million signing bonus and a $7.2 million prorated portion of an $18 million option bonus that the team exercised and paid in 2023.

Because Ragnow announced his retirement in June, the move will likely be handled as a June 1 designation, meaning the dead-money cap hit will be spread across two years.

With base salaries of $9.15 million this year and $11.9 million next, Ragnow had cap hits of $14.05 million and $16.35 million the next two seasons. His retirement will free up more than $9 million this year and north of $12 million in 2026.

I talked about that topic, along with a few more immediate reactions, in a video yesterday afternoon. You can watch that here:

Q: Who are the best available free-agent centers? Any logical trade targets? — Julian Swearengin

Justin: The market is picked over, with names like Nick Harris and Daniel Brunskill among those still lingering out there. Don't worry, I don't expect you to know either of those guys, which illustrates the point.

Frankly, I’m not sure the Lions need to hit the market. They don’t have a Pro Bowler waiting in the wings to replace Ragnow, but they aren’t going to find one on the street, either.

In reality, they’re in a relatively good position to absorb the loss. Graham Glasgow has played center at a reasonably high level throughout his career, and Tate Ratledge can be evaluated and developed as a longer-term option.

Even at guard, they have depth with Miles Frazier, Kayode Awosika, and Netane Muti, so they don’t have to pursue someone like Brandon Scherff or Will Hernandez, who might not even be interested in a situation where the path to a starting job isn’t clear.

Q: Do they sign an edge with some of the created cap space? Trades? — Dustin Quarrella

Justin: Projecting any trade, whether for a lineman or anywhere on the roster, is throwing darts. Could Brad Holmes make a deal before, during or after training camp? Sure, but I wouldn’t classify it as likely, and landing a starting-caliber player is even less likely.

Ragnow’s retirement does give them some added cap space, as detailed above. While I wouldn’t ever rule out a Za’Darius Smith reunion, the Lions made clear choices by bringing back Marcus Davenport and Al-Quadin Muhammad, two more well-rounded edge defenders who are cheaper and won’t hurt you against the run.

Smith would be a fifth veteran edge and likely push Ahmed Hassanein off the roster. Clearly, Smith could help more today, but Hassanein was drafted as a four-year investment. Is it worth exposing him to waivers in this scenario?

Q: How have other teams dealt with something like this? — Zac Herr

Justin: Obviously, retirements are typically permanent, but it’s not like teams don’t lose key players to season-ending injuries all the time during the offseason. The NFL is built around a next-man-up mentality. It sounds callous, but you have no choice but to move on.

However, in this case, and I’m sure Dan Campbell will confirm it later in the week, the organization was likely aware this scenario was a possibility. Ragnow isn’t the type of person to spring this on the team without warning.

Q: Seeing a lot of people comparing Ragnow retiring to Jason Kelce retiring, insofar as it’s not a death knell for the Lions' season that others are acting like it is. Is that a fair comparison in your eyes? — Trevor Wood

Justin: There is some overlap, to be sure. It might have been a little more obvious that Kelce's retirement was coming, given his age. That gave the Eagles more time to prepare. They drafted Cam Jurgens a couple of years earlier, played him at guard during Kelce’s final season, and then shifted Jurgens to center last year.

Losing any one player outside of the starting quarterback shouldn’t be able to derail a contender’s season before it starts. Ragnow’s retirement is unquestionably a blow, but the Lions have plenty to overcome.

Q: When do you think they realistically knew definitively he was retiring? —Adam Gladwish

Justin: To be clear, this is speculation. I genuinely don’t think this was his mindset immediately after the season. But at some point, his body clearly wasn’t recovering the way he expected or liked.

I expect to learn that the team was aware he had been considering retirement for weeks, if not months.

Q: What do you think of Ratledge as a replacement? — Christopher Cerniglia

Justin: I think we have to acknowledge that it’s far too early to say. He hasn’t played the position in a game and has only limited practice reps at both Georgia and here, hindering our ability to make a meaningful assessment.

Ratledge possesses the necessary physical gifts and leadership traits. Still, there is a significant need for mental development, much of which can only be gained through experience.

My gut instinct tells me it would be premature to throw him into the fire as a rookie starter at center. Maybe I’ll feel differently following the preseason, but how can we reasonably expect him to process Brian Flores’ blitz schemes and make the protection calls and adjustments out of the gate?

Q: I think the Lions drafted knowing Frank might not be back. But if not, would they have changed their draft strategy? — Ahbah

Justin: They would have been more likely to adjust their free agency approach than their draft strategy. Targeting a specific position in the draft is chasing needs, and that’s something Holmes is committed to not doing.

Q: Is there any chance Rags hangs around the team to help transition the next guy? — Chad Lincoln

Justin: I wouldn’t expect that. I could see him stopping by to visit, but I don’t think he’ll be hanging around the facility like a pseudo-coach.

Q: How do you think Jared Goff will adapt to a new front line in front of him? Faster plays? — Brandon Kerr

Justin: I just wrote a bit about this in my training camp preview for the interior offensive line that will run next month, so I don’t want to cut myself off at the knees too much. But I do think you’re on to something. The interior has the potential to be fine, but it could also become a weakness while the chemistry develops.

I could definitely see an expansion of the quick-passing game for the upcoming season to alleviate some of the potential stress on the QB.

Q: Gun to your head, what’s the starting OL combo week 1? — Michael Martini

Justin: Decker, Mahogany, Glasgow, Ratledge, Sewell.

Q: What is the Lions’ record without Frank in both Patricia and Campbell eras? — Jing Ba

Justin: 2019: 0-1

2020: 0-2

2021: 3-9-1

2022: 1-0

2023: 1-1

2024: 1-0

So, 0-3 in the Patricia era and 6-10-1 in the Campbell era, but 3-1 after the first year of the rebuild.

Q: The Hall of Fame might be difficult for Ragnow with an early retirement, but what does the process look like for the Pride of the Lions? How likely do you think he is to receive those honors? — Sydney Worth

Justin: Hall of Fame is out of the question. Seven seasons, no first-team All-Pro selections, and one year of playoff success. That’s not the required resume to get enshrined as an offensive lineman.

Even the Pride of the Lions is a stretch. If the Lions win a championship, he’s going to fall way down the list behind guys like Goff, Decker, Sewell, St. Brown and Hutchinson, assuming those younger players stay on their career trajectories.

Q: There was a lot of discussion that Brad Holmes attempted to trade up in the first round for an edge. In hindsight, do you think Holmes’ attempts to trade up were actually for Grey Zabel, considering the Ragnow news? — Steve Kudwa

Justin: It strikes me as unlikely. Holmes doesn’t have a track record of valuing interior linemen in a way that he’d give up major assets to move up in the first round to get one. Amusingly, Zabel, like Ratledge, didn’t play center in college. So, it’s not as if the learning curve would have been lessened for one more than the other.

Q: Will we see more Goff in the preseason to help him get game reps with his new center, or will training camp and joint practices be enough? — Nick Olah

Justin: No, I anticipate that everything gets sorted out on the practice field, particularly during the joint practices.

Q: Glasgow has said he really dislikes playing center, but he seems best suited because of his experience. Do you see him remaining a starter at guard even if he doesn’t “win” the job? — Anthony Kuehn

Justin: I was there for those comments, and it wasn’t an objection to playing center as much as it was a dislike for entering a game midstream when he hadn’t been practicing the position. Glasgow’s preference is built around his preparation. He prefers to be settled into one spot, and if that’s center, I don’t anticipate he’ll protest.

Q: Do you think the Lions would have made a bigger effort to re-sign Kevin Zeitler if they knew Ragnow was retiring? — Chris Johnson

Justin: No, I think the valuation was the valuation, and they weren’t going to exceed that.

Q: The Lions have had quite a few great Centers over the years. Is Frank Ragnow the best the Lions have ever had? — Dustin Whitehead

Justin: It’s tough to compare eras. I don’t know how we reasonably discuss Ragnow vs. Alex Wojciechowicz, who played both center and linebacker for the team and is in the Hall of Fame.

Given that modern athletes are bigger, faster and stronger, I have no issue saying Ragnow is the most physically gifted and dominant center to ever play for the franchise.

Q: Is there any way to know if the Lions projected Ratledge as a center when they drafted him, or if his reps there are more a function of necessity and/or the experimentation cross-training that seems to be a typical part of their OL development plans? — Zach Meyers

Justin: Holmes highlighted Ratledge’s versatility on draft night, which the GM described as surprising to learn about. I’m certain the flexibility to play center, stemming from some fall practices at Georgia, was the heart of that comment.