Updated March 2, 2026, 4:44 p.m. ET
Graham Glasgow’s time with the Detroit Lions is up, and now the veteran offensive lineman will have to decide if he wants to keep playing football.
The Lions released Glasgow, 33, on Monday, March 2, in a move that creates about $5.5 million in salary cap room, hours after trading David Montgomery to the Houston Texans.
A third-round pick out of Michigan in 2016, Glasgow played seven of his 10 NFL seasons in Detroit.
He played center and both guard positions in his first stint with the team in 2016-19, signed with the Denver Broncos as a free agent in 2020 and returned to Detroit in 2023.
Glasgow tweeted a message on X, thanking the organization and city.
“I’m grateful for the 7 years I’ve spent as a Detroit Lion. I’m thankful for the great teammates, coaches, and friends I had along the way. I love this city and the fans that have supported me for the better part of a decade. There truly was no place I would have rather been.
“Whether the times were good or bad, I’m proud of the time that I was able to spend here. Detroit and being a Lion has had a huge impact on making me into the man that I am today, and because of that, it will always hold a special place in my heart.
“I wish the Lions, especially my former teammates, nothing but the best. I will always be a fan of the guys who I took the field with, and I’ll always be a fan of the team that changed my life. Thank you!”
Graham Glasgow impact on Lions
Glasgow played primarily right guard in his first season back in Detroit, moved to left guard to accommodate Kevin Zeitler in 2024 and switched to center last season after the late-spring retirement of Frank Ragnow.
He started 14 games last season, though the Lions benched him for two weeks late in the year under the guise they wanted to rest his sore knee. The team lost both games with Glasgow on the bench, to the Pittsburgh Steelers and Minnesota Vikings, and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2022.
Glasgow returned to start the Lions’ season-ending win over the Chicago Bears.
Asked after the season if he intended to play again in 2026, Glasgow said, “We’ll see.”
“I mean, I’m still under contract next year so unless that changes I’m a Detroit Lion,” he said. “But yeah, I guess, I don’t know.”
Lions OL depth chart
The Lions will be in the market for a veteran center when the free-agent negotiating period opens March 9 as they retool an offensive line that struggled in Ragnow’s absence in 2025.
Swing tackle Dan Skipper announced his retirement in January and rejoined the team as an offensive assistant. Left tackle Taylor Decker, a draft classmate of Glasgow’s in 2016, announced last week he would return for the 2026 season.
Tyler Linderbaum of the Baltimore Ravens and Connor McGovern of the Buffalo Bills are considered the best free-agent centers on the market, though the team has left open the possibility of moving right guard Tate Ratledge to the position.
A second-round pick out of Georgia last year, Ratledge spent last spring practicing at center and opened training camp at the position before the Lions moved Glasgow inside. Ratledge showed promise at right guard, his preferred position, though he said after the season he’s willing to help the team wherever he’s needed.
On locker clean-out day, Ratledge had Glasgow autograph a jersey for him as he packed his belongings for the winter. He said Glasgow “helped me a ton” and “had the biggest influence” on his growth as a rookie.
“Anytime I was struggling that’s the guy that I went to,” Ratledge said. “He kind of took me under his wing so that meant a lot to me.”
Dave Birkett covers the Lions for the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Bluesky, X and Instagram at @davebirkett.