Lions lose starters Davis, Ragnow to injuries
DETROIT — A pair of Detroit Lions starters left the team’s preseason game Friday night with injuries.
Starting middle linebacker Jarrad Davis was carted to the locker room with a right foot injury during the first drive, before center Frank Ragnow was helped off the field in the second quarter with a right leg injury.
“There’s nothing really to report right now,” Lions coach Matt Patricia said after his team’s 24-20 loss to the Buffalo Bills. “We’ll see what it looks like tomorrow and go through the normal procedures the day after the game and try to see what that looks like and then we’ll go from there.”
Davis is scheduled to undergo an MRI on the foot Saturday, a source told ESPN. He appeared to suffer the injury at the end of a 9-yard run by Bills back LeSean McCoy when Lions teammate Devon Kennard appeared to roll up on Davis’ leg. The run was called back for holding.
Davis fell to the ground clutching his right leg; he tried to get up and get to the sideline on his own but couldn’t put any pressure on the leg.
After doctors and athletic trainers examined Davis, taking his right shoe off in the process, they called for the cart to take him to the locker room. Davis, 24, needed assistance to reach the cart, and multiple Detroit defensive players went over to speak with him before he left the field.
“Just making sure that he knows we’re there for him,” Kennard said. “That’s like the leader of our defense and the heart and soul of the defense to an extent, and just so he knows we’ve got his back and we support him and praying that he’s OK, whatever the injury is. I just let him know that I was praying for him and I hope that he’s back soon.”
Davis, the team’s first-round pick in 2017, has been Detroit’s middle linebacker the past two seasons and was expected to hold down that role again in 2019. While the Lions have not yet named team captains for 2019, Davis was a captain last season.
He has started all 30 games he has played for Detroit, making 196 tackles with eight sacks, eight passes defended and two fumble recoveries. With the Lions releasing safety Glover Quin in the offseason, Davis has often been looked to as the main communicator and heart of the team’s defense since.
With Davis out, a combination of rookie Jahlani Tavai and veteran Jalen Reeves-Maybin took his place in the lineup.
Midway through the second quarter, Ragnow, 23, injured his right leg and was examined on the turf for a few minutes before being helped off the field. He initially could not put weight on his right leg before trying to gingerly test it as he went directly to the locker room for further examination.
Ragnow, Detroit’s first-round pick last year, is expected to be the team’s starting center in 2019. If his injury were to be serious, the Lions would likely shift Graham Glasgow, their center last season, back to the position from right guard.
It would be a big blow to Detroit, though, because the interior of the offensive line is the one area on the offense where starting positions haven’t been settled.