Frank Ragnow was bracing for the worst.
The Detroit Lions’ Pro Bowl center heard his groin pop midway through practice Wednesday and feared his bad run of injury luck was about to continue.
Ragnow missed 13 games with a foot injury last season and two games with fractured throat cartilage late in 2020, so he was relieved to get good news when he underwent an MRI Thursday.
“Wednesday I was pretty down, I’m not going to lie after last year’s deal,” Ragnow told reporters Friday. “I was pretty upset, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as I expected initially so that’s good, and we’re just going to take her day by day and see.”
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Ragnow returned to practice on a limited basis Friday and is listed as questionable for Sunday’s season opener against the Philadelphia Eagles.
He said there is nothing his groin is preventing him from doing, and he moved smoothly at practice, firing out of his stance during position drills and jogging across the field. Still, the Lions are weighing the risks of bringing Ragnow back this week and jeopardizing losing him for a longer stretch of the season.
“I think it’s less on me because I’m going to try to go, but it’s more on the coaches and the medical staff,” Ragnow said. “I’m treating it as much as I can, doing whatever they tell me and making sure that I’m giving my best show so they give me the approval.”
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Ragnow said he is “pretty cautiously optimistic” he will be cleared to play against an Eagles team that has one of the best defensive lines in the NFL. Nose tackle Javon Hargrave is coming off a Pro Bowl season, Fletcher Cox has long been one of the league’s top interior defensive linemen, and the Eagles spent a first-round pick on gigantic Georgia product Jordan Davis this spring.
The Lions, however, won’t make a decision on Ragnow until Saturday at the earliest.
“I think we’ll know a lot post-practice,” Lions coach Dan Campbell said Friday morning. “I think it’ll tell us a ton, but I know he wants to give it a go and he had a smile on his face this morning, so I’d take that as at least a step in the right direction.”
If Ragnow cannot play, Evan Brown will start at center.
Brown made 12 starts last season and allowed two sacks, according to a Free Press charting of the games.
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Ragnow said he has confidence in Brown and the rest of the Lions offensive line, but he “really, really, really badly” wants to be out there.
“It’s frustrating,” Ragnow said. “I think (former Lions quarterback Matthew) Stafford said one (time when) he was pretty banged up before we were playing the Tennessee Titans in (2020). I saw some quote that like, ‘It’s Sunday and I’m the quarterback for the Detroit Lions so I’m going to do everything to be out there.’ That really impacted me and that’s kind of how I like to approach it. Like, I want to be out there, so it’s frustrating but I understand. I trust the medical staff, I trust the coaches and whatever’s best for me they’re going to make that decision.”
Along with Ragnow, linebacker Julian Okwara (hamstring) is questionable for Sunday, safety Ifeatu Melifonwu (hamstring) is doubtful and defensive tackle Levi Onwuzurike (back) and guard Tommy Kraemer (back) are out.
With Kraemer unavailable, Campbell declined to name a replacement for starting right guard Halapoulivaati Vaitai, who will miss at least the first four weeks of the season with a back injury.
The Lions used both backup guard Logan Stenberg and right tackle Penei Sewell at the position in practice this week.
“We have an idea where we want to go with it, but we’re prepared to move quickly if needed another way, I guess is the best way to say it,” Campbell said. “We have options.”
Contact Dave Birkett: dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.