Detroit Lions: Frank Ragnow showing why he was a 1st round pick

Frank Ragnow is already performing at a high level along the Detroit Lins offensive line.

Frank Ragnow was being hailed as the final piece to General Manager Bob Quinn’s rebuild to the offensive line when he was selected by the Detroit Lions. Everyone anticipated he will play center like he did at Arkansas, but Quinn had something else in mind. He decided to put Ragnow at left guard and keep Graham Glasgow at center. Because of Ragnow’s versatility, Quinn had the luxury of putting him where he would think he would shine. From the looks of it, Quinn made the right call.

It was hard to get an idea of how Ragnow was doing the start of training camp. With no contact, it is difficult to gauge how an offensive lineman is performing. As soon as the pads came on, Ragnow was ready to show what he is capable of.  By all accounts, he is living up to his billet as a dominant, physical lineman he was portrayed to be.

Ragnow has dominated one-on-one drills. More times than not he is planting someone in the ground. When he gets set, he is stonewalling anyone facing against him on defense. He is excelling in all facets of pass and run blocking. Outside of a couple hiccups, Ragnow has looked very solid. This should not come to anyone’s surprising considering how highly regarded He was coming out of Arkansas.

Ragnow has even made a very strong impression with Coach Patricia:

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“I think with Frank, it’s been a couple days in pads and really through the spring he’s been pretty consistent in everything that he has done,” Patricia said before practice. “I think he’s a guy that works extremely hard, loves the game, he’s physical, he’s strong, but still has a lot to learn. There are so many different things in there from an offensive line standpoint that you have to learn and see it from a different perspective.”

When the Lions drafted Ragnow, it came with a lot of questions. With how much the defensive line was in flux, the vocal majority of the media and fanbase wanted the Lions to draft an edge rusher. So when the pick came in and it wasn’t a defensive lineman, Ragnow came under a lot of scrutiny. After sitting on it, the more the pick made sense. He was the best center in the draft class, he fills a vacant spot, he never allowed a sack in college, and he is smart and dependable.

I think some people still wish the Lions had drafted an edge rusher, but so far Ragnow looks every bit the player you would want as your first round pick. He will help this offensive line become great by helping spur the running game and most of all protect Matthew Stafford.

It is still early in training camp but looks like Quinn nailed this selection. The Lions will start joint practices next week and then open their preseason game against the Oakland Raiders on August 10th. That will be our first glimpse of the Detroit Lions offensive line and get a better gauge on Ragnow in game situations.