The Detroit Lions made a slew of roster moves on Wednesday ahead of their Thanksgiving showdown against the Green Bay Packers. The move that caught most Lions fans’ attention was All-Pro center Frank Ragnow surprisingly coming out of retirement to re-join Detroit for the stretch run.
However, that wasn’t the only move Detroit made in the trenches for Week 13. The Lions also activated rookie offensive lineman Miles Frazier from the reserve/Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list. The rookie lineman was listed as questionable on the team’s final injury report, setting the stage for him to play on Thanksgiving.
The Lions had other plans, as on Thursday, the team listed Frazier among the inactives for their matchup against Green Bay. This decision caught some Lions fans by surprise, especially with Graham Glasgow also inactive, leaving them with not much depth.
Miles Frazier’s NFL Debut Still Unclear After DNP in Week 13
Earlier this week, fans were only campaigning on social media for the rookie to be activated, as the Kayode Awosika experience has been a disaster (46.9 pass-blocking grade on Pro Football Focus).
They got their first wish, but won’t see him on the field for Thanksgiving, which raises a couple of interesting questions. Is the former LSU offensive lineman ready to play? Or is Frazier’s NFL debut further out than expected?
We know that the young offensive lineman has been a full participant at practice over the last two weeks, which is a good sign. Additionally, the Lions’ deadline to activate Frazier and Josh Paschal from their 21-day practice window was on Wednesday.
The Lions didn’t activate Paschal, which means his 2025 season is effectively over as he’ll stay on injured reserve. Detroit likely has some plan for Frazier since they didn’t keep him on injured reserve. What that is, no one knows.
However, we do know that Frazier was one of the better versatile offensive linemen in the 2025 NFL draft class. He can play tackle but also inside at guard. During his three-year stint at LSU, Frazier only gave up 24 hurries and four sacks across 1,564 pass blocking snaps.
While Lions fans are excited about Ragnow’s return and looking forward to his debut, they also need to keep an eye on Frazier over the next few weeks.
Detroit is reportedly starting Trystan Colon at center (h/t @Justin_Rogers) and Awosika at left guard against the Packers. Depending on how those two guys perform, it could determine the next steps for the rookie.