The Detroit Lions are ready to go on a revenge tour during the 2025 NFL season. That may sound odd for a team that won 15 games in 2024, but the Lions know that they have unfinished business. Detroit had their best season in franchise history, securing the No. 1 seed in the NFC for the first time ever. But it all came to an end during the postseason with a crushing loss against the Commanders.
Detroit has already faced plenty of adversity before the beginning of the 2025 season. The Lions lost both of their coordinators to head coaching jobs on other teams. They will also be without Pro Bowl center Frank Ragnow after his surprise retirement from the NFL.
But that won't stop the Lions from kneecapping their way back into the playoffs.
The Lions made some great moves this offseason that shored up the weak points on the roster. The defense has plenty of depth at every position, and the offense is just as good as ever.
Detroit's biggest improvements came during the 2025 NFL Draft. The Lions added several talented rookies, a handful of whom will help the team immediately in Week 1.
But which of those young players are already making an impact on the team during the offseason? And will it translate well into the regular season?
Below we will explore one Lions rookie who has turned heads at the team's OTAs over the past few weeks.
Tate Ratledge taking reps at center during Lions OTAs
The Lions drafted guard Tate Ratledge in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft.
Ratledge was routinely paired with the Lions during the pre-draft process. Not only is he a scheme fit in Detroit, but he matches the culture as well. He is a self-described “dirtbag”, which is exactly the type of player the Lions love during the Campbell and Holmes era.
Ratledge has turned heads at Lions OTAs for a number of reasons. The reason that fans will care about the most is the fact that Ratledge took some snaps at center during rookie minicamp and OTAs.
He admitted that it is a big transition, especially because of the mental load that weighs on the mind of every NFL center on each play.
“You gotta say a lot more,” Ratledge said after practice during rookie minicamp. “You gotta know the safety rotation, stuff like that, know where the point’s going. At guard most of the time you’re listening to the center tell you where to go. At center, like I said, you’re telling everybody else where to go.”
Ratledge will most likely start for the line in some capacity during his rookie season.
Now it is simply a question of which position Ratledge will end up playing.
Could Tate Ratledge take over for Frank Ragnow at center?
The Lions got some surprising news earlier this week when Frank Ragnow retired from the NFL.
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Ragnow retired at 29 years old, in the middle of his prime, because of a litany of injuries he has battled throughout his career.
This development puts Ratledge's snaps at center during OTAs in a completely different light.
It is fair to argue that the Lions were not caught off guard by Ragnow's retirement. The announcement was certainly surprising for Lions fans, but those in the building were certainly aware of this as a possibility.
Now most Lions fans are wondering if Ratledge will take over for Ragnow at center in 2025.
That would be a risky move by Detroit, but it is possible.
Cole Cubelic, a former starting center in the SEC, explained what the transition to center is like in a recent segment on his radio show.
“First off, the operation of it is unique,” Cubelic said, per Richard Silva of The Detroit News. “It's different if you haven't done it. … But with proper repetition, you can get to where it is second nature more so than you can a lot of other things, even in football or other sports. It's never gonna be just natural, but you can simplify it with repetition.”
Cubelic also seemed to suggest that having a veteran at center can have a calming effect on the entire offense.
“There has to be a calming factor, specifically at that position pre-snap, because you have to distribute a lot of information. … You have to see things, you have to react to things and there needs to be an understanding of processing that quickly and then sharing that quickly,” Cubelic said. “All that can be difficult.”
The Lions could turn to veteran Graham Glasgow, who already has experience at center, instead of Ratledge.
Ultimately, Detroit will make a decision based on how their players perform in training camp and the regular season.
If Ratledge does not start at center in 2025, the Lions could still explore a position change for him in the future.
