Pro Bowl center Frank Ragnow has been carted to the locker room with a knee injury that he suffered in the second quarter of a game against the New Orleans Saints. He was assessed on the field for several minutes, then required assistance from the medical staff to walk gingerly to the sideline. He was immediately carted to the locker room for further evaluation.
Detroit jumped to a 21-0 lead in the game, but Ragnow’s status is now a growing concern for a team that is trying to close out its first division title in 30 years. The Lions have spent most of the last two months putting backups on the field along their offensive front. They finally got healthy on Sunday with the return of Jonah Jackson at left guard, but now they’ve lost their star center. Ragnow has been one of the top players at the position for years, and ranked No. 2 at the position coming into the weekend according to Pro Football Focus.
The Lions have a capable backup in Graham Glasgow, who started this game at right guard and has now moved back to center. The problem is without Halapoulivaati Vaitai, Detroit is forced to send rookie Colby Sorsdal back onto the field at right guard. Sorsdal has been bad the last two weeks at guard, and was benched on Thanksgiving.