The Detroit Lions are trying to replace two coordinators this season. But another departure the team is currently dealing with is center. Veteran Frank Ragnow retired following the 2024 campaign, which gave Detroit a significant hole in the middle of the team’s offensive line. On Friday, SI on College Football’s Randy Gurzi predicted the Lions to fill that void during the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft.
In a new mock draft, Gurzi projected the Lions to select Auburn center Connor Lew at No. 28 overall.
Frank Ragnow’s retirement was shocking, and it gives the Lions one major need,” Gurzi wrote. “They fill that with Connor Lew, the best center in this class.”
Lew was the only center off the board in the first round of Gurzi’s mock draft. Although he was a late first-rounder in the mock, Lew was also just the fourth offensive linemen to be selected.
Could Lions Select Center Early in 2026 NFL Draft?
There’s a long way to go before the 2026 NFL Draft. As a result, there are three big unknowns — Detroit’s biggest need entering 2026, which prospects will best fit those needs, and where the Lions will be selecting in the first round.
With those unknowns, it’s pretty difficult to project anything about the 2026 NFL Draft.
If the Lions had to make their 2026 first-round pick today, though, center would be an obvious choice. Likewise, Lew is one of the most best fits to fill that need.
After Ragnow’s retirement, veteran interior offensive lineman Graham Glasgow moved to center for the Lions. Last year, Glasgow started at left guard in Detroit.
The veteran has previously started at center in his career. This season, though, his results have been mixed through the first two weeks. According to the Pro Football Focus player grades, Glasgow has excelled in pass protection but severely struggled at run blocking.
Ragnow was regularly one of the top-rated centers in the PFF player grades over the last few years. He also made three consecutive Pro Bowls from 2022-24 and second-team All-Pro three times with the Lions, including in 2023 and 2024.
But Ragnow retired at 29 years old this offseason in large part because of significant nagging injuries.
Lew has been a star at Auburn since his freshman season. He could offer the Lions an immediate all-around upgrade in the middle of the offensive line.
Now entering his third season as the Tigers‘ starting center, Lew has already been pegged by head coach Hugh Freeze as ‘an NFL center’ and is generating legitimate buzz as a potential first-team All-SEC performer,” NFL Draft Buzz wrote. “His development trajectory puts him in rare company – you simply don’t see many centers start from day one in the SEC and improve at this rate.”
Could the Lions Move Tate Ratledge to Center?
Gurzi correctly identified center as a need for the Lions. But it’s possible the team already has its franchise center of the future.
In the 2025 NFL Draft, the Lions selected interior offensive linemen Tate Ratledge and Miles Frazier. Detroit picked Ratledge, who is starting at right guard this season, at No. 57 overall in the second round.
Ratledge has the potential to play center in his NFL career.
“I don’t know what the future’s going to bring. But yeah, I just think, we felt good about trying him here,” Holmes said of Ratledge, via SI on Lions’ John Maakaon. “And look, I think he could’ve handled [center] if we just could’ve left him there.
“But when you start looking at the whole combination of him and [Glasgow] and everything, I think that that was the best thing for not only the players being put in the best positions, but also for the team.”
If Lew offers the Lions generational center potential, then perhaps the team selects the Auburn lineman to start him next to Ratledge. But if Ratledge could start at center, it wouldn’t be surprising for the Lions to target a different need in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft.
Lions Projected to Find New Frank Ragnow Replacement