There has been no shortage of rumors and speculation surrounding Detroit Lions center Frank Ragnow possibly retiring in the near future. Ragnow has said he is playing in 2024, but what about beyond that?
Ragnow, who played through multiple injuries in 2023, including a toe issue that has impacted him for multiple years now, made comments after the Lions' NFC Championship Game loss that sounded like a guy who might retire.
Then, there was a rumor from Sportskeeda's Tony Pauline earlier this offseason that Ragnow might retire after the 2024 campaign.
In an article from The Detroit News' Justin Rogers, Ragnow talked about those comments following the playoff loss to the San Francisco 49ers, and Rogers added that Ragnow, "isn’t retiring. It’s not something he’s even considering.”
“I was frustrated,” Ragnow said of the comments after the 49ers loss. “It was kind of annoying. All I said was I’m going to need some time to heal up the day after the game. That was my intention and then it took off, which was kind of annoying, but it is what it is.”
Ragnow also detailed to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press about spending time with his family this offseason and letting his body get right.
"A lot of time with my baby and my wife and my family back home," he said. "I went to northern Manitoba in the middle of nowhere for a week and kind of ice-fished and spent a lot of time solo and now I’m really focused. I took some time off and really kind of — I’ve always been kind of, I don’t want to say anxious, but it’s always like you got to go, you go to go, you got to go, you got to go, and I've never really given myself time off in the offseason. And this year I actually took time to let myself heal, let my body heal up and then get ready to roll."
"I feel really good," Ragnow added. "I feel as good as I've felt in a while. This has been my best offseason, 100%. I really dove into a lot of things to take care of my body and I feel like I'm clicking right now. The goal is to keep it a steady trajectory into the season."
In what comes as no surprise, Ragnow says the way last season ended has motivated him even more and he wants to close the deal in 2024.
"It's a huge motivating factor," Ragnow said. "It's so frustrating and I try to keep it fresh in my mind, remembering how horrible that felt. I'm not going to speak for everybody, but I think it's in the back of a lot of guys' minds. We should have done it, and a lot of that was on us, but we're all back and ready to roll. It's so exciting."
Ragnow is only 28 years old, has two more years left on his deal after 2024 and is still at the top of his game. Barring something unforeseen, he should be here for a few more years, at least.
