Good News, Bears: First Ben Johnson, now Frank Ragnow — Lions have some holes to fill

When the Bears hired Ben Johnson as their head coach in January, it had a two-pronged effect on their re-build: It gave the Bears a coach who could invigorate their offense and properly mentor quarterback Caleb Williams; and it took Johnson away from the NFC North rival Lions, who were 25th in scoring the season before Johnson was promoted to offensive coordinator in 2022 (and 29th in scoring in 2021 before Johnson became the de facto passing game coordinator after OC Anthony Lynn was demoted).

It remains to be seen how integral Johnson was to the Lions' offense. They still have the same players who led the league in scoring last season.

Well, most of them, anyway. The Lions-will-suffer-without-Johnson narrative received a boost Monday with center Frank Ragnow's sudden retirement at 29. Ragnow, a first-round pick (20th overall) from Arkansas in 2018, leaves at the top of his game — he was a second-team All-Pro for the second consecutive season in 2025. And while the Lions didn't seem to miss Ragnow in the one game he missed last season (a 42-29 victory over the Seahawks, with left guard Graham Glasgow moving to center and back-up Kayode Awosika playing left guard), that could be a significant hole to fill for an entire season and beyond.

And if a standout Lions player suddenly retiring at 29 at the top of his game sounds familiar, it should. Ragnow follows wide receiver Calvin Johnson, running back Barry Sanders and running back Billy Sims among players who suddenly retired in their prime:

• Johnson retired at 30 after having 88 receptions for 1,214 yards and nine touchdowns in 2015. While those numbers actually were subpar for Johnson, he still ranked 11th in the NFL in receptions, 10th in yards and tied for 14th in touchdowns. He had a ton left. He finished his career with 731 receptions for 11,619 yards and 83 touchdowns — that's an average of 81 receptions for 1,291 yards and nine touchdowns for nine seasons.

• Sanders was a similar tale. He retired suddenly at 31 after rushing for 1,491 yards (4.3 yards per carry) and four touchdowns in 1998. Those numbers also were down from his peak. And something went wrong at the end of the 1998 season. In his first 10 games that season, Sanders averaged 112.6 yards per game and 5.0 per carry with four touchdowns. But in his final six games, he averaged 60.8 yards per game and 3.1 yards per carry with no touchdowns. But few if any thought Sanders was losing it. He was such a spectacularly dangerous runner — the only running back who could be compared to Gale Sayers in style — that he was still in his prime even if he wasn't at his peak.

• Sims' story was much more understandable but still painful for Lions fans. In five seasons in the NFL, Sims, the No. 1 overall pick in the 1980 draft out of Oklahoma, was a three-time Pro Bowl player who averaged 85.1 yards per game and 4.5 yards per carry with 42 touchdowns in 60 games. But he suffered a devastating knee injury in Week 8 of the 1984 season against the Vikings. He missed the rest of that season and the 1985 season before retiring because of the injury.

Sanders retirement was so sudden, Bears personnel from three different levels had levels of doubt that it would stick — defensive tackle Jim Flanigan, defensive coordinator Greg Blache and director of pro personnel Rick Spielman.

• "Before everybody starts popping champagne, you better relax. He could be back by Thanksgiving," Blache said when reporters broke the news to him at training camp on July 28, 1999 in Platteville.

• "I'm sure he's still got a couple of years left in him, and I doubt that he'll seriously be done," Flanigan said. "[But] if he is, thank God and good riddance."

• "I have no doubt [he'll return]," Spielman said. "He's what — 1,400 yards away [from Payton's all-time rushing record]? He's too competitive to just walk away."

Barry Sanders' sudden retirement in 1999 warranted four pages of coverage in the Sun-Times — a Jay Mariotti column on the back p age and this double-truck inside.

As it turned out, of the Lions' players who retired early, the one player who left for injury came the closest to returning. Sims talked about a comeback in 1989, but the Lions never reciprocated (a previous million-dollar disability settlement the Lions gave to Sims might have had something to do with that.). But neither Johnson nor Sanders have had a serious thought of returning.

As for Frank Ragnow, never say never. But for now, he seems pretty resolute that he is done. "I have given this team everything I have and I thought I had more to give, but the reality is I simply don't," Ragnow wrote as part of an Instagram post. "I have to listen to my body and this has been one of the hardest decisions of my life."

But for now the reality is that the Lions have a hole at center they need to fill. Glasgow obviously has played center but only in a fill-in role, and that still would leave a hole at left guard. Rookie Tate Ratledge, a second-round draft pick (57th overall) played right guard at Georgia, but has been getting reps at center in offseason practices.