Last Friday, Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell held a press conference before day three of OTAs and discussed two players who weren't in the building.
"We only have two guys that aren’t here right now. I know who they are, I know where they are at, I’ve talked to them, and we’re all good."
Later that day, by simple deduction, it was realized that the two players were center Frank Ragnow and linebacker Alex Anzalone. On the same day, the Detroit Free Press's Dave Birkett reported that both players are seeking new contracts with the team.
While Lions fans may not realize this, this is really a pretty standard thing that happens all over the league. It's not the first time a Lions player has wanted a new contract, and it's not the first time that players in the NFL didn't show up to OTAs.
The thing about all this is that while we know that Ragnow and Anzalone want new contracts, we don't know that they didn't show up to voluntary OTAs as some sort of holdout or protest. By the way, Campbell isn't worried about any of this bleeding into training camp.
“No. I think what’s great is that any player that I talk to, I have a relationship with, and there’s an open line of communication. Whatever I say to those players, I’m not going to say to you guys. I never will. There’s, communication that has been great, so I’m not. Listen, I’m not worried about anything. I know this, we’re in late May. Is it even June yet? I don’t even - we’re not even in June. So, life’s good. We’re going to be just fine.”
Now, on to Ragnow. While fans of every NFL team are just inherently worried about money that isn't theirs, this isn't one that should be a big deal for Lions fans.
Yes, Ragnow is a top-five paid center in the NFL, and the Lions made him the highest-paid three seasons ago in 2021. When he signed that deal, he got a guaranteed $42 million. Pretty much all of that is gone now.
At this point, Ragnow is a 29-year-old player with an inoperable toe that he plays on every year and has essentially no guarantees or safety left in his contract. The Lions can cut him any day now if they want to under his current deal, and that's it. At the end of the day, Ragnow just wants the same thing that everyone is ok with Alex Anzalone getting, security.
So why is this a good thing? It's a good thing because the Lions have an All-Pro center who everyone thinks is going to retire any second now, telling you that he wants to stay and keep playing football.
Anyone who's watched the Lions in the past few seasons knows what this offensive line looks like when Ragnow is not in the middle. He is the anchor of the entire thing, and he's looking for a new deal that will keep him around longer. That's huge for a team that now doesn't have to find a way to replace an All-Pro offensive lineman.
Don't worry too much about the contract. It'll get solved before you know it, and it will likely have little bearing on the Lions' ability to sign the rest of their key players.
