The Pro Bowl anchor of one of the NFL's best offensive lines, Frank Ragnow prefers to take things "one day at a time." He isn't into bold statements or big headlines. If he speaks loudly, it's only through his play. Asked about the Lions kicking off the NFL season on Thursday Night Football against the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs, this is about as loud as Frank Ragnow gets:
"Yeah, pretty cool, huh?" Ragnow said on 97.1 The Ticket. "Going from no primetime games last year to now being the opening game of the season, it’ll be great, it’ll be cool, it'll just get guys even more motivated than we already are to start the season. And it’ll be a great test for us to get things going right away."
As Ragnow prepares for his sixth season in Detroit, the Lions finally have the NFL's attention. The hype train lurched out of the station last summer when the team starred on HBO's Hard Knocks, headlined by The People's Coach Dan Campbell. It picked up steam last season when Detroit went 8-2 down the stretch and topped things off by ending Aaron Rodgers' Packers career in one of the most-watched Sunday Night Football games of the year. And amid an offseason in which the Lions went big in free agency and the draft, the train is officially flying down the tracks.
The NFL schedule-makers hopped on board last week when they awarded the Lions four primetime games this season, five if you include their annual spot on Thanksgiving. As Campbell said of the opener in Kansas City, the NFL is "betting on we won't get our ass kicked." Even Ragnow, who tries to "shut out the offseason noise," has heard the growing intrigue in the Lions. It's not just coming from Detroit.
"In some ways you embrace it," he said. "You realize you have an opportunity because, let’s be honest, in the NFL in general, there’s not many times where teams have a good roster, a good coaching staff and everything really coming together. So you get that excitement and realize and embrace that and keep that in the back of your mind while you’re working.
"But also, you just remind guys, we didn’t make the playoffs last year, we didn’t win the division last year. We’ve got a lot to prove. If anyone’s been in this league longer than a year, you realize that every year is completely new. So we’ve got a lot to prove to go out and show that we can be one of those great teams."
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Just ask Vegas. While the Lions are favored to win their division for the first time in 30 years, they also opened as seven-point dogs against the Chiefs. Some national media members have objected to the idea of a non-playoff-team being featured in the season-opener. If the Lions have turned boos into belief under Campbell and GM Brad Holmes, they still have their share of critics and cynics. That's just fine by Ragnow, especially in regard to their chances against the Chiefs. The Lions' star center doesn't want points for showing up.
"Just the way this offseason has been, there’s been so much hype around us and a lot of people saying good things about us, I think it’s good. We’re a team that, yes, we finished off strong but we didn’t make the playoffs, we’ve got a lot to prove and I think it’ll be good to make sure that this young team and all of our guys in that locker room are hungry and maybe have a bigger chip on our shoulder to make sure we go out and earn everything," Ragnow said.
For now, Frank Ragnow is just worried about the day in front of him: "I'd say most offensive linemen would agree with me, we just take it one day at a time and get ready to work."
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One of the longest-tenured and most popular players in the Lions locker room, Ragnow and several of his teammates are hosting a skeet shooting event this Thursday through the Rags Remembered Foundation, which Ragnow started in honor of his father who passed away of a heart attack when Ragnow was in college.
The Skeet Shoot Showdown, May 18th at the Bald Mountain Shooting Range in Lake Orion, will allow contestants to compete against Lions players and will also feature archery, axe throwing and a gun raffle, followed by a pig-roast dinner and an awards reception with live and silent auctions.
Tickets are still available, with proceeds supporting a camp Ragnow is hosting in June at YMCA Camp Ohiyesa to bring children who have lost a loved one in touch with the outdoors, like Ragnow's father once did for him.
"The grieving process was and has been really tough on me, and I just wanted to use the outdoors to help kids who have lost a family member or to just connect kids to the outdoors in general because I’m so grateful for the way I was raised and so appreciative of the fact that my parents introduced me to the outdoors at a young age," Ragnow said. "Iy’s been a staple in my life no matter what and especially helping me get away from everything and grieve."
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