With the news of Detroit Lions offensive lineman Frank Ragnow retiring from the NFL after being with the team since being drafted with the 20th overall pick in the 2018 draft. As the Lions prepare for a grueling schedule, ESPN football analyst Mina Kimes speaks on how huge of a loss it is for the team now that Ragnow has retired.

Detroit has been known for its dominance in the trenches, especially on the offensive side of the ball. Kimes would say on “NFL Live” that Ragnow's retirement is “massive” since he was “one of the best centers” in the NFL.

“It's massive,” Kimes said. “The Lions' success over the last couple of years has really been inside out. It started with the offensive line, and you're losing Ragna, is one of the best centers of football, but you're replacing two out of three of the interior offensive linemen, Christian mahogany, who's playing guard did play some but he'll be a full time starter for the first time, and that creates a lot of questions and a lot of problems for a number of reasons. This run game, which has been so dominant, is incredibly complex.”

Frank Ragnow's retirement could lead to pressure on Lions' Jared Goff

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With Lions quarterback Jared Goff teasing new wrinkles in the offense, the loss of Ragnow no doubt impacts the team and brings up questions regarding their run and pass protection. Speaking of Goff, Kimes would bring up how the signal-caller is an “incredibly pressure-sensitive” player, which makes the news about Ragnow even more concerning for the team.

“The Lions run a ton of different concepts, so you're asking for a new combination to execute that, and then pressure,” Kimes said. “Jared Goff has been absolutely fantastic in Detroit, but he remains an incredibly pressure-sensitive quarterback. Over the last two years, when he is kept clean, he is first league wide in QBR when he's under pressure, that drops to 27th so there's going to be a lot of pressure in a different way on this new offensive line, and their new offensive coordinator has to figure all of this out, and you know, it's going to be quite a transition to Detroit, but this is a big big loss.”

At any rate, Detroit is looking to further improve after finishing last season with a 15-2 record, which put them first in the NFC North, though they were eliminated by the Washington Commanders in the divisional round.