Frank Ragnow said Friday that he didn’t want to retire. His body just didn’t give him a choice.
He announced his retirement last June and attempted a comeback Nov. 29 but failed a physical with a torn hamstring.
Ragnow, 30, spoke for the first time since calling it quits after seven seasons.
“To shoot it to you straight, I was trying to will myself to play. I was,” Ragnow said, via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. “And my body was telling me otherwise and I was just like in like paralysis, if you will. I did not plan on retiring in the middle of the summer, believe it or not. It was like I was trying to get like, ‘You can do it for the guys, for the fans; it’s who you are.’ But it’s just like I was uncomfortable, and it’s one of those things where you have a couple kids, and I don’t want a sob story. I’m OK. I’m going to be completely fine and everything. But it’s one of those things like, I don’t know, is the juice worth the squeeze thing and to me ultimately it came down to that decision.”
The four-time Pro Bowler felt guilty at leaving his teammates, but said he made a “horrid” decision to try to come back last season.
He has officially closed the door on ever playing again.
“Yeah, I’d say so,” Ragnow said.
Lions head coach Dan Campbell made Kelvin Sheppard one of his first assistant coach hires when he got the job in 2021, and promoted him to defensive coordinator in 2025. As Sheppard heads into his second season as Detroit’s defensive coordinator, Campbell is seeing continued growth.
Sheppard played linebacker in the NFL and was previously a linebackers coach, but Campbell said Sheppard looks more in sync with the entire defense now that he has a year of experience running it all.
“Relative to last year at this time, he’s just much more comfortable,” Campbell said. “I think he’s got a much better grasp of how he wants it to look. Now he’s coaching all 11. He’s coaching the front, he’s coaching the backers, and he’s coaching the back end. He sees it all. That’s what happens when you’re able to do it, you go through a season, you go through the practices, you diagnose yourself as a play caller and say, This is where we can get a little bit better. You can’t help to get better, whether you’re a head coach, OC, DC, special teams, with time on task, under pressure, making corrections, adapting to personnel, injuries, and he’s done all that. So I love where Shep’s at right now.”
A year ago, the loss of both defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn and offensive coordinator Ben Johnson to head-coaching jobs was felt by the Lions, and on offense, Campbell decided he needed to make a change. But on defense, Campbell still thinks he has the right coach for the job, and a coach who will be better in Year Two.
The Cardinals will have a new tight end on the roster when they report to training camp this summer.
Mike Garafolo of NFL Media reports that they are signing Kenny Yeboah to their 90-man roster. The veteran tried out for the Chiefs at their minicamp this week, but he will head to Arizona rather than stick around Kansas City.
Yeboah spent four seasons with the Jets before joining the Lions last year. He went on injured reserve in August and did not play in any games during the regular season.
Yeboah had nine catches for 111 yards and a touchdown in 33 appearances for the Jets.
Lions safety Brian Branch has not returned to the field since tearing his Achilles last December and it remains unclear when that will change.
Head coach Dan Campbell was asked about Branch’s status during a Thursday press conference and he said that there have been “no setbacks” in the safety’s recovery. There also hasn’t been a firm timetable set for his return, however, and Campbell didn’t take a stint on the physically unable to perform list off the list of possible paths that things will take.
“I guess there’s always a chance,” Campbell said. “I’m going to just go ahead and widen the window so we don’t have to talk about it anymore. Let’s just go ahead and say December. Anything before that is a bonus. That way you don’t have to ask me.”
Branch is heading into the final year of his rookie deal and his success in navigating his return to action will likely play into the kind of contract he lands for 2027 and beyond.
After two years as a major contributor, Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs was promoted to starter in 2025.
While Detroit did not make the postseason last year, Gibbs was still plenty productive, recording 1,223 yards rushing with 13 touchdowns and catching 77 passes for 616 yards with five TDs.
Now with the departure of David Montgomery, head coach Dan Campbell said the 2026 offense will revolve around Gibbs even more.
“[H]e’s going to be our bell cow now,” Campbell told reporters on Thursday, via transcript from the team. “He really became more of that last year, but we’re going to hang our hat on him quite a bit. We’re going to do a lot of things we feel like he does well.
“Now, I’ve mentioned this before. He can run everything that we’ve got. He can run every scheme that anybody’s ever run. He’s not just an outside runner. He is not just a space runner. He can create his own space in the middle. And some of his biggest runs have been gap scheme right down the pipe where he’s had patience and found it and guys blocked it up well.”
With new coordinator Drew Petzing, Campbell said they’re going to ask a lot of Gibbs, as well as plenty of other offensive contributors. Campbell mentioned Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams, Sam LaPorta, Isiah Pacheco, and Penei Sewell by name.
“{W]e expect him to have a big year for us,” Campbell said. “We’re going to put a lot on his plate in the run and pass game.”
All this has the backdrop of Gibbs also being eligible for a new contract. Gibbs told reporters this week that he’s letting his agent handle those negotiations while he worries about his own job.
