ALLEN PARK — For this year’s team Halloween party, [Detroit Lions](https://detroitnews.sports.gracenote.com/football/nfl/team/1) center Graham Glasgow dressed up as “Sully” from “Monsters, Inc.,” a lovable, burly figure whose ultimately tasked with looking after somebody younger than him and saving the company he works for.
Sound familiar?
OK, so maybe Glasgow’s set of circumstances is a bit less dire than Sully’s. But following [the retirement of stalwart Frank Ragnow](https://www.detroitnews.com/story/sports/nfl/lions/2025/06/02/detroit-lions-center-frank-ragnow-announces-retirement-from-nfl/83992291007/), the Lions needed a hero to not only uphold the standard of Detroit’s center position, but also help bring along first-time starters Christian Mahogany and Tate Ratledge. And Glasgow, for the most part, has been that.
“Graham has been the ultimate pro,” Lions coach Dan Campbell said this week. “He’s a smart guy. He’s headsy, he’s played a lot of ball. He’s thick in there; he can anchor. I feel like he’s kind of calmed us down in there.”
During the early stages of the 2025 offseason, this outcome was admittedly difficult to foresee. Struggles plagued Glasgow as a pass protector after returning to Detroit in 2023, which was compounded when he was forced to move from right guard to left guard during the 2024 offseason. And then there was a comment from Campbell at this year’s league meetings, before Ragnow retired.
Asked about his thoughts on Glasgow moving forward, he didn’t exactly give a vote of confidence in his viability as a starter.
“We know where Graham is at. You know, every year, certainly, you play that position and it’s a year later, you know?” Campbell said of Glasgow, who turned 33 in July. “But Graham’s somebody that we still value because he’s got versatility.”
Nobody could have believed at that time that Detroit would end up going into the season with Glasgow starting between two newbies. But here they are, with a 5-2 record, experiencing some bumps along the way but managing to figure it out as they go.
And Glasgow, for his part, is experiencing a resurgent campaign. He’s on pace to have one of the best seasons of his career as a pass blocker, with just eight pressures on his record — and no sacks — through seven games, per Pro Football Focus. Of course, this data always should be taken with a grain of salt, but the tape matches up for the most part.
“There’s always stuff to improve on, but overall, I think that the communication’s been overall good, and I think it’s been going well,” Glasgow said.
More than that, he’s adequately helped along Ratledge and Mahogany, a process that began long before Ratledge, a 2025 second-round pick, arrived in Allen Park as a rookie this past spring.
Mahogany, a sixth-round pick in 2024, had a tough start to his NFL career. He missed most of his rookie training camp with mononucleosis and wasn’t activated until after the season began. Impressively, he worked his way up to being the first interior lineman off the bench, so when Glasgow had to miss a game toward the end of the season, Mahogany was ready to roll — because of Glasgow.
Mahogany said Glasgow helped him learn assignments and tailor techniques to his body type and playing style.
“Graham, last year, especially being my rookie year, eyes are big, but he kind of slowed everything down. … Frank (Ragnow), obviously Penei (Sewell) and (Taylor) Decker, they’re all great mentors and leaders, but Graham, me and Graham would work more last year, so he would help me (with) more one-on-one stuff,” Mahogany said.
“I definitely wanted to grab that knowledge. … It’s good to pick everyone’s brain, and Graham has a big brain. He’s a very smart player. It was a blessing for him to help me.”
That big brain is also filled with lots of jokes and observational humor. Glasgow is often cited as the funniest player on the team, which has helped him find some common ground with his new colleagues.
“He’s the funniest guy in the room,” Mahogany said.
Ratledge took it a step further, saying, “Graham is one of the funniest humans I’ve ever met in my life. … Something about his sense of humor. Him and I have a very similar sense of humor, and he’s just hilarious.”
While the 33-year-old Glasgow has some years on the 25-year-old Mahogany and 24-year-old Ratledge, there hasn’t been as much of a cultural generation gap as one would think. Glasgow refers to himself as “pretty hip,” although he sometimes has to educate the younger players in his room about his favorite music.
“Graham’s not out of touch. He knows the times. If he doesn’t know it, he’ll make it where he’ll know it,” Mahogany said.
“I relate to the 22-year-olds nowadays, I guess,” Glasgow said. “The other day I had to explain to Penei who Linkin Park was. I know that’s not a big deal to him, but I was like, ‘Do you know who Jay Z is? They had a collaboration with Jay Z at one point. They were a pretty big deal.’
“And he didn’t really understand it. He didn’t get it.”