After spending his entire life on the offensive line, Hank Fraley had a chance to be an offensive coordinator this season -- a more glamorous and lucrative position. He chose to stay in the trenches in Detroit.
Fraley, 47, interviewed twice this offseason for the Seahawks offensive coordinator job, and was a rumored target of Ben Johnson and the Bears. Dan Campbell and the Lions weren't going to lose him, not that Fraley wanted to leave. They took care of him with a promotion -- and a pay bump, it's safe to say -- by adding run game coordinator to his title as offensive line coach.
"It looks good on paper," Fraley joked.
Fraley is more about the substance. Whatever his title says, "I always say as an O-line coach, you're in charge of a little bit of everything." A former 10-year NFL offensive lineman who has spent 13 more years coaching the position between college and the pros, Fraley has played a major role in developing Detroit's offensive line into the engine of a top-five offense for three years running.
Which is exactly why he drew such strong interest from Mike Macdonald and the Seahawks, not to mention likely overtures from Johnson and the Bears. (Did you guys really think we would leave for Chicago?!?!?" said Fraley's wife. "Our hearts are in Detroit!!) Interviewing with Seattle was a good experience, said Fraley, except for the "long flight" for a man of his size.
"It was a great opportunity to at least look at and learn from," Fraley said. "You never want to take things for granted. I just want to be the best O-line coach I can be, to be honest. To be the best coach, it's like being the best dad, the best husband. It was an honor for somebody to call and reach out, and it was a great experience. We had a great meeting, but I'm very glad I'm back here because this is where I wanted to be with my family. We've got special stuff here, I've got a special room."
Fraley means so much to his offensive linemen in Detroit that All-Pro center Frank Ragnow, who has played his entire NFL career under Fraley, joked at the end of last season that "I’ll sabotage him, I’ll leak stories, whatever it takes" to ensure that he stays. All-Pro right tackle Penei Sewell, who was recruited out of high school by Fraley when Fraley coached at UCLA, called him "one of those pillars for me in this organization."
"You refuse to let Hank leave," Ragnow said. "I haven’t played in this league without Hank and I don’t plan on doing it."
"He’s not going nowhere," said Sewell.
For Fraley, it sounds like the decision to stay was ultimately an easy one. On top of being able "to walk in this building every day" and work with people he loves, "family is a big part of it," he said. Fraley is a husband, and a dad to four, three of whom will be in college this fall -- "so that's three college bills," he quipped. It would have been a lot to uproot their lives in Detroit.
"But really, the room. Coach Campbell is a big part of it. Family, we've been here going on eight years. My kids, before here, the longest they ever lived (in one place) was four years. Michigan, I would say, is home for them. Even though they'll go anywhere -- we've lived all over the country -- home right now, for my wife and I, is here in Michigan."
Incidentally, the Lions rewarded Fraley's loyalty by drafting two offensive linemen last month to bolster one of the best units in the league. In fact, when they traded up in the second round for Georgia guard Tate Ratledge, it was their first time spending a Day 1 or Day 2 pick on the offensive line since taking Penei Sewell seventh overall in 2021. They doubled down in the fifth round with LSU guard Miles Frazier. Ratledge and Frazier will compete with Graham Glasgow and Christian Mahogany for the two open jobs on either side of Ragnow this season.
Fraley said he tries to be "selfish every year and I always beg for guys" in the draft, but "I'll be totally honest, sometimes on draft day, you're not totally sure. I'm sitting with my feet up like, 'Alright, what are we going to do?'"
"But it is nice to get some fresh, new faces every year," he said. "This year, we happened to draft two young men that had really good college careers, and hopefully they can come in here and help us."
One thing's for sure: Ratledge and Frazier will be in good hands in Detroit. Fraley is already cross-training them at multiple positions, Ratledge at guard and center, Frazier at guard and tackle. Fraley is a "firm believer" in pushing his offensive linemen outside their comfort zones, to raise their ceilings and ultimately extend their careers.
"I better watch what I say out here, but (other teams) don't always cross-train their guys when they get them," Fraley said. "Unless you're an absolute starter Day 1 somewhere, I always feel like you need to be able to do both ways."
Fraley laughed and said that when Sewell arrived in Detroit and told him, "Coach, I only know left tackle," he responded, "You played like a year or a year and a half in college. I watched you play right tackle in high school. Then they moved you around tight end, so don't give me that." Now Sewell is the best right tackle and arguably the best offensive lineman in the league.
"There are a lot of coaches" in the NFL, said Ragnow, "but there’s not many coaches like him that empower his players and really it is an open dialogue. He really does everything he can to put us in the best positions to be confident and go out there and play well.
"I’ve said it before, but him being a former center in this league has been invaluable to me. Talking about how we see things, and not only him giving me advice, but me telling him how I see it and him being willing to listen. I think that’s so rare, and I'm just so grateful for him."
Ragnow and Sewell were right: Fraley wasn't going anywhere. Detroit, he said, is "definitely where I wanted to be."