This Detroit Lions interior can be a big part of adding consistency in 2020.
Detroit Lions starting center Frank Ragnow was one of the more recent players to participate in a Zoom call with Lions beat writers while relaxing in his mother’s basement.
The topic of football didn’t come up for the majority of the call, as Ragnow mostly discussed how he has done a lot of listening over these past few weeks regarding his teammates’ views on the riots going on around the nation.
When football eventually was brought up, Ragnow remained optimistic about the upcoming season, citing the work he has been doing in said basement as a reason why the Lions’ running game could be solid in 2020.
Here’s what Ragnow told Mlive.com recently.
"“I’m just trying to work my tail off individually here in Minnesota in my mom’s basement trying to get to be the strongest, toughest guy I can be so we can pound the rock this fall,” Ragnow said. “I’m definitely excited about the weapons we’ve added, and I’m always excited about running the ball.”"
Detroit Lions’ Frank Ragnow is set to have a breakout season
Ragnow is expected by many to be one of the Lions’ breakout players in 2020, as Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press tossed his name in the mix in a recent mailbag question regarding offseason improvement.
There are more than a few running backs on the Lions roster happy to see Ragnow continuing to grind in the basement, as Kerryon Johnson, Bo Scarbrough and Ty Johnson are expected back The backfield will be crowded in 2020, as the Lions also drafted D’Andre Swift in the second round and the speedy Jason Huntley in the fifth.
While some of those backs will be fighting just to make the roster, Ragnow is the rising star of an offensive line unit that Pro Football Focus ranked just outside the top ten in their yearly rankings following the season.
Ragnow is a big reason for that solid ranking, as he was the second-best run blocker at his position per Pro Football Focus while allowing only two sacks (Tied for the eighth-best mark in the NFL) despite snapping the ball for three different quarterbacks.
What could eventually make Ragnow one of the league’s best center is the fact that he excels in areas where even the greatest linemen in NFL history tended to struggle.
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One of the hardest things for an offensive linemen to do is block back on a 3-tech. While the play is going to the opposite direction, if Ragnow gets pushed back at the point of attack, it could screw up the whole play and lead to a big loss in yards.
The quick burst that Ragnow has off the snap is rather remarkable. Just watch how fast he gets off the ball while blowing back sizable defensive tackles and creating large cutback lanes.
One of the toughest blocks that a center has to make is the 'back block,' especially the further away the backside DT is aligned.
— Brandon Thorn (@BrandonThornNFL) September 26, 2019
Lions C Frank Ragnow is outstanding at lining up & fitting on DTs as far away as a 3T, which is special. Some examples here. pic.twitter.com/yTmSIaL172
Ragnow mentioned toward the end of the Zoom Call that he looks forward to being a leader in an O-Line war room that has seen a lot of turnover, as he believes that himself and offensive tackle Taylor Decker can help lead this group to consistency.
If the Lions do end up towards the top of the league as a rushing unit, it will pretty hard for Pro Bowl voters to keep Ragnow’s name off their ballots.