Locker room (cleanout) buzz: Lions linemen prepared to hold position coach hostage and plenty of injury updates
Allen Park — Here’s what I learned bouncing around the Detroit Lions’ locker room on cleanout day at the team’s practice facility Sunday afternoon.
Aging like fine wine
During last year's locker room cleanup, a beat-up Frank Ragnow's characterization of his physical and mental exhaustion was framed as a player considering premature retirement. That was never the case.
This year, Ragnow's frustrations are limited to the team falling short of its goals. Regarding how he's feeling after another All-Pro-caliber campaign, Detroit's center is in a much better place than he was a year ago.
"Comparatively, I'm healthier than I've ever been," Ragnow said. "That's a blessing."
Over their dead bodies
Ragnow's tone after Saturday's loss to Washington remained somber, both because the team's season abruptly ended and the uncertainty of the future.
"I think every year, every team faces it," Ragnow said. "We'll see what happens. This league, yeah, that's the one thing that sucks. It's never going to be the same team. We know that as players and that's the frustrating part, again, about yesterday."