Lions news: Ziggy Ansah in Ghana, will miss Detroit's Monday workouts

Detroit Lions stud edge man Ziggy Ansah will not only miss his team's first day of workouts on Monday, he'll be doing so while in Ghana.

Earlier this offseason, the Detroit Lions made the decision to place the franchise tag on former Pro Bowl defensive end Ziggy Ansah to keep under contract this offseason. This has helped retain one of their key defensive players on the roster for at least another year.

The offseason has continued to round with the draft quickly approaching and team organized workouts on the horizon. According to Justin Rogers of the Detriot News, Ansah will not be at Monday's workouts under new head coach Matt Patricia on Monday due to a family obligation in Ghana.

I've been told Ziggy Ansah won't be with Lions tomorrow when team reports for workouts. He's still in Ghana for a family obligation. He's kept team leadership, including Patricia, in the loop. Expectation is Ansah will be back working with team shortly.

— Justin Rogers (@Justin_Rogers) April 8, 2018

This shouldn't be much of an issue with the Lions given that it is a personal matter and it is still quite early in the offseason. There is still plenty of time for Ansah to get caught up with the new defensive schemes under Patricia well ahead of the 2018 campaign.

Detroit has many high expectations laid in front of Ansah to be a big part of their defensive game plan. He has been a cornerstone of their defensive line since selected with the fifth overall pick in the 2013 NFL Draft.

The 28-year-old is coming off a highly productive 2017 campaign where he finished tied for eighth in the league with 12.0 sacks with 44 total tackles, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery in 14 games. This included three separate games with three sacks pushing his career total to four such performance tying him with Robert Porcher for the most in franchise history.

Ansah has proven to be a highly-impactful player on the field despite nagging injuries over the last few seasons. If he is able to stay healthy, he could be in store for another productive campaign that could earn him a lucrative deal next offseason with the Lions or another team. In the meantime, this personal issue shouldn't cause any issues to arise with his current standing with the organization ahead of the 2018 campaign.