To prove that his injured pectoral has healed to the point that he can play this week, Frank Ragnow punched Dan Campbell up against a wall in the Lions' facility. Per Campbell, "That's his way of telling me, 'Look how strong I am. It's good, it's healed.'" Message received. Ragnow will be back on the field Sunday against the Cowboys after missing one whole game with a partially-torn pec.
"He's a super healer, he really is," Jared Goff said Wednesday on 97.1 The Ticket. "He's a freak of nature. It's really impressive to watch him put himself through stuff like that and then come back so quickly. He feels good, he feels ready to go. I know he's excited to be back with us and I'm excited to have him back out there."
The Lions' Pro Bowl center has played through a litany of injuries over his seven years in Detroit, including, famously, a fractured throat in 2020. He's also battled a chronic problem with his "stupid toe" since 2021, plus knee and back injuries last season, and ankle, groin and foot issues along the way. And those are just some of the ailments we know about. One of the best players at his position, Ragnow just keeps going.
When he got rolled up on in the Lions' playoff win over the Bucs last season, Ragnow had his twisted knee taped up at halftime and never missed a snap. The Lions ran the ball behind him for a go-ahead touchdown in the third quarter, Ragnow plowing the way against Vita Vea.
When Ragnow fractured his throat early in a game against the Packers toward the end of a season going nowhere, he simply told Matthew Stafford on the sideline in a hoarse whisper, "I can’t really talk, just to let you know. Make sure you’re communicating with everybody up front." He went back on the field and never missed a snap.
When Ragnow was injured last month early in the Lions' Week 3 win over the Cardinals, he told Goff in the huddle, "I think I tore my pec." To which Goff said, "Well, are you gonna take yourself out?"
"And he's like, 'No I'm good,'" said Goff. "And I'm like, 'Alright, well, let's go, let's finish the game.'"
So Ragnow lined back up and never missed a snap. Goff has seen a lot of tough players over his nine years in the NFL, especially the big guys in front of him.
"I don't know if I've played with anybody who's played through more pain and injuries than him," said Goff. "So if that's tough, then damn right, he is the toughest guy I've played with. Plays through anything, wants to be out there with his teammates, doesn't care about the pain, doesn't care about anything."
"Frank, as we all know," said Campbell, "is as throwback as they get."