The Detroit Lions have seemingly barked up the wrong tree by forcing standout center Frank Ragnow to repay part of his signing bonus upon retirement. Fans and former teammates alike are understandably livid, and they aren't the only ones: Jason Kelce is furious.
Ragnow and Kelce have notable things in common. They manned the same position (at a very high level) and only knew one franchise before hanging up the cleats. So, the latter's comprehensive, blunt thoughts on the Lions recouping some funds from the former for not seeing his contract through are particularly eye-opening.
Kelce took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to express his exasperation about the Lions effectively letting the door hit Ragnow on the way out:
"So while I get that the team has a right to ask for money back, in the spirit of the agreement, I think it's bulls--- Frank [Ragnow] is being asked to return money," Kelce wrote.
Jason Kelce unleashes on Lions for forcing Frank Ragnow to repay part of signing bonus
That was only one sentence from Kelce's lengthy, strongly-worded message. He understands that the Lions are entitled to seek reimbursement. Yet, as he highlighted, just because you can doesn't mean you should.
To Kelce and many others, "this was clearly a player that the game had physically taken its toll on, and his body was clearly no longer holding up to the rigors of the NFL." Ragnow left it all out on the field across his seven-year tenure in Detroit. The Lions could've made a nice gesture out of respect, but instead made a petty move that provides minimal financial relief.
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Detroit has done this in the past, but apparently hasn't learned its lesson. They gave Lions legends/Hall of Famers like Barry Sanders and Calvin Johnson the same treatment, describing it as compensation for "services that they hadn’t completed." Nevertheless, Kelce believes that undoes the intended benefit of negotiating for assurances in advance, which is hard to argue.
"The whole purpose of a signing bonus is to be a guarantee up front that insures a salary irregardless of performance metrics, or most importantly injuries that could compromise your career in the future," Kelce stated.
No lies detected here. It's not like Ragnow is trying to rob the Lions in broad daylight. Quite the opposite, actually, considering the four-time Pro Bowler attempted to make a comeback last season when Detroit needed him most. His loyalty to the organization, city and fan base is easy to see, and this is the thanks he gets?