LIONS ASSISTANT GENERAL MANAGER RAY AGNEW ROOKIE MINICAMP DAY 1 QUOTE SHEET
May 9, 2025
Opening Statement: “I’ve got to tell you all, I’m really excited today. My second grandchild was born, so it doesn’t matter what you all say to me today, I’m good. She was born yesterday at 11:44, a girl. I had all boys, so I’ve got two granddaughters now. God is good. Glad to see you guys this morning. As always, and I probably say this every year, this is one of the most exciting days for me just seeing the joy on those kids’ faces. They finally reached their dream. I understand that journey. In that journey, you hear all the time, ‘Make sure you have a backup plan. Only one in a million.’ There are so many negative things that are said, then when you finally get over that hump and make it, you can look at everybody and say, ‘Yeah, I was that one in a million.’ So, excited about these guys. Excited about talking to you guys today, too. And the other exciting thing is for us, we put so much work into these guys, now we’ve got them here and we’ve got a chance to coach them up and see if we did the right thing. That’s the exciting part about this whole situation. I remember this day, and it was about 10 years ago when I got drafted. If you all believe that, I’ve got some land to sell you. It’s just a great moment. I can’t explain it. Coaches and scouts, we put so much work into these guys and now we’ve got them here so it’s awesome to have them here. And I’m going to talk about these guys. As we watched (Lions DL) Tyleik (Williams) throughout the year, the kid just got better and better and better every time you watched him, he got better and better. I think there’s a lot more growth with this kid. This kid’s got a lot of upside. I don’t think he’s reached his full potential yet. He’s got a chance to be a really, really good player for us. We were excited he was there for us to pick him. Great player. He’s got a chance to be a really, really good run player. I think he’s underrated as a pass rusher. He’s got some things he needs to be taught, and (Lions Defensive Line/Run Game Coordinator) Coach (Kacy) Rodgers, our new D-line coach, will do a great job teaching him. This kid has a chance to be a force in the middle. As a defense, if you’re not good in the middle, you’re not very good. This guy will help us, man, with the guys we’ve already got. He’s a talented kid and love the way he plays the game. Then, we drafted (Lions OL) Tate Ratledge, a guy that we liked, a guy we identified early in the process we liked. The first thing you see, this is a big man when you see him. He’s long, tall, big man. But you love the versatility of the player. He can play multiple positions inside and the interior. Like the toughness, love the way he plays the game, a guy who can get out in space – those guys who can get out in space and block for a guy like (Lions RB) Jahmyr Gibbs and then he’s going to the house for a touchdown, you love those guys. So excited about Tate, man. Really, really excited about Tate. Then this next guy, I think he was born to be a Lion. This (Lions WR) Isaac TeSlaa, you talk about a tough, physical, competitive human being. What stood out in his Senior Bowl is like when you go into team period and he’s blocking, he was just wearing those DBs out, I mean just wearing them out. And then the guy catches the ball. Everything is with his hands, he barely ever uses his body. Tough kid, good run after the catch. We’re excited about him. I think he’s got a ways to go. I think the upside this kid has, he’s got a chance to be a really good player for us. He’s got to grow some as a route runner, play more on the outside. The kid played I think a Wing-T quarterback in high school and went onto Hillsdale and that’s when he made the transformation to receiver, but man we’re excited to get the guy. I’m sure you’ve all heard this story already, but when he came here on his Top 30 visit – when I first saw him, he had a Lions pullover on. Then, the next time I saw him he had a Lions jersey on. I was like, ‘Man, this kid is meant to be a Lion.’ What a great kid. We enjoyed – glad we were able to get this kid, but he was born to be a Lion. Then we picked another offensive lineman, fifth round, (Lions OL) Miles Frazier. Another guy from the SEC. Another physical guy, another guy that plays the game the way we like to play it. Another guy with upside. I love when (Lions Run Game Coordinator/Offensive Line) Hank (Fraley) and them get their hands on them. This kid’s going to be a good player for us. And then we drafted (Lions DL) Ahmed (Hassanein) in the sixth round. All I will say about Ahmed is he’s relentless. He’s relentless. He plays the game the way we like to play. He plays it hard. He’s a second-effort rusher. He can win with hands as a rusher. I think he’s got some upside as a rusher, and I think when Coach Rodgers gets his hands on him and coaches him up, the kid’s going to be a good player for us. We’re excited about him too. Then, what about the guy getting drafted then getting engaged on the same day? Who will ever forget that day? And then the passion this guy has for the game, you just love it. You’re going to see a relentless human being on the football field when you watch this guy play, so really excited about him also. Then we went back to Georgia, drafted (Lions S) Dan Jackson in the seventh round. Highly competitive player, instinctive player, better zone – in coverage-wise he’s better in zone than man. The guy’s a willing tackler in the run game. He’ll have some special teams value, and that’ll be key for him making our team. Then we got (Lions WR) Dominic Lovett in the seventh round also, a guy who’s still growing as a route runner, but a guy who when he gets the ball in his hand, he’s explosive and quick and he’s got the ability to make a guy miss. But, that’s the Draft class. Excited about these guys.”
On what stood out the most in the pre-draft evaluation of Lions DL Tyleik Williams: “Well, when he would strike blocks. When he would strike blocks, you could see the offensive linemen moving back because he was such a powerful human being. He does a good job coming out of his hips and exploding through the offensive linemen. That was the first thing that stood out to me.”
On what characteristics make a good guard: “Obviously, you want a physical player, tough, aggressive. The guys you hated the most when you played against them were those pricks, man, that would hit you after, and they played with that grimy attitude. They would hit you after the play and all that. You hated those guys, and you knew you had to come to work when you played against those guys. Those are the types of guys you look for, those gritty guys, those guys that compete and finish blocks, they block through the whistle. I would just say those guys – the guys that you hated to play against.”
On the confidence he and Executive Vice President and General Manager Brad Holmes have in getting the right players for the team regardless of outside perception: “Well, it started with Brad and (Lions Head Coach) Dan (Campbell) being on the same page, and the rest of us, we follow their lead. We’re not going to be pressured about what anybody says. If the guy doesn’t fit what we’re looking for, we’re just not going to take him. At the end of the day, when a guy’s playing for you and he’s making plays, nobody – they’ll forget that you took ‘him’ over whoever they wanted you to take. We just stick to what we believe. No special formula or anything – just stick to what we believe.’
On why he thinks the 2025 NFL Draft wasn’t as deep as previous classes: “I’ve got my thoughts. You know why? I think NIL’s got a lot to do with it. Some of those guys are making pretty good money, so they’ll stay in school. It used to be a bunch of juniors would declare and come out – a lot of those guys are staying in school. That’s my thought – I don’t know if it’s true.”
On if he thinks the depth in future NFL Drafts will eventually improve: “I mean, yeah, everything comes to an end at some point. Like that 2021 Draft – that was a really stacked draft, but it’s been a while since you’ve had one of those. I think eventually it will.”
On if the Lions knew ahead of time how stacked the 2021 NFL Draft was: “Once you started looking at it, yeah.”
On if there is an undrafted rookie free agent he pursued that he’s particularly excited about: “I’m not going to say his name, but yeah, there is a guy that I called. Some of us get involved when we’re trying to close a deal on a guy, and yeah, I got involved and closed a deal on a kid. I’m not giving his name up.”
On how the team decides the amount of work and responsibilities to place on rookie offensive linemen: “Well we cross-train all our guys, we always do that. (Lions Run Game Coordinator/Offensive Line) Hank (Fraley) and (Lions Assistant Offensive Line Coach) Steve (Oliver) do a great job with those guys. We trust them tremendously. I know (Lions Head Coach) Dan (Campbell) trusts them and I just think they do a great job with them. These guys – you understand how much these guys can do mentally when you go through the process and you vet them and you find out how much they can handle mentally. Both of those guys (Lions OLs Tate Ratledge and Miles Frazier) can handle all of it. We feel good about that.”
On the report that Executive Vice President and General Manager Brad Holmes was trying to trade 30 times during the 2025 NFL Draft: “Thirty times? I’ve never heard that. Brad is aggressive. He’s aggressive as far as trading, and that’s something we learned back in L.A. I don’t know about 30 times.”
On why it was harder to maneuver and trade in the 2025 NFL Draft: “I think we’ve always been able to move where we’ve needed to move to. We’ve been fortunate in that way. I wouldn’t say it was more difficult than any other time. To move 30-something spots, that costs a little bit. I wouldn’t say it was any different than any other Draft.”
On the skill level of draft prospects recently compared to prior drafts: “If you’re going back to my day, they are way (more) bigger, faster, stronger, all of that.”
On whether the preparedness of prospects is attributed to college programs: “Yeah, some of them are. Some programs are better at it than others. I am going to always say this as an old-school guy, I think we were tougher. I don’t see any issue with any of these guys. I just think they’re more gifted. Guys are just bigger, faster, and stronger.”
On what the pros and cons are of having an additional preseason game: “The young guys get a chance to play a little more. As far as schedule and all of that, I leave that up to (Lions Head Coach) Dan (Campbell) and the coaching staff. It’s an opportunity for the young guys to get to play a little more. Get more tape so other teams can see them.”
On what the biggest challenge is for Lions WR Isaac TeSlaa to play more on the outside: “I think facing press coverage, things like that. I think he’ll be fine, though. (Lions Assistant Head Coach/Wide Receivers) Scottie (Montgomery) will teach him well. The kid learns fast, so he’ll be fine. That’s just the biggest thing. In this league, guys can get their hands on you, and they’re pretty good at press coverage. That will be the one thing he has to get over.”
On Lions WR Isaac TeSlaa joining a crowded wide receivers room and what that does for what is expected of him in his rookie season: “Well, you’re always hoping that your rookie class is productive, and I think the kid will be productive. I think he’ll help us (as) the year goes on, but we do have older guys that can play until he gets to that point.”
On what the evaluation process is for an undrafted player like Lions S Ian Kennelly: “It’s the same as the other guys. You don’t hold back on him. You’re looking for the same things. When he tackles, can he break down in space and tackle? You’re looking for the same things. He passed the test in a lot of those things. Now, obviously, the level of competition, you think about that, but the kid will hit you.”
On what he will be looking for from Lions DL Ahmed Hassanein as a pass rusher: “I just think some growth. It will be some growing pains on this level because you’ve got pretty good football players on this level. I just see him as he gets taught more tools in his toolbelt as far as a pass rusher – using his hands better, learning when to rush with leverage, learning when you have the sweet spot and turn the corner, so just learning some nuances of the game.”
On if there were any undrafted rookie free agents that he was surprised to see go undrafted: “No, I wouldn’t say anybody I was surprised about. I mean, some guys we are happy to get – all of them. We are happy to get all of them. I’m not going to single any one of them out, we’re happy to get them all.”
On what it has been like to remain with the Lions with so many changes on the coaching staff: “When you have success, that’s going to happen. (New York Jets Head Coach Aaron Glenn) AG and (Chicago Bears Head Coach) Ben (Johnson), those guys are two really good coaches. But man, I’m a big (Lions Defensive Coordinator) Kelvin Sheppard fan, so I have no reservations. Shepp, I was a fan of him as a player and as a coach. He’s demanding. Our defense is going to be aggressive, still. And the guy is a great coach, man. He gets his players better. Love the move. And (Lions Offensive Coordinator John Morton) Johnny Mo, we know Johnny Mo. Johnny Mo is creative, aggressive as a play caller. We’re excited about those guys. I’m a big (Lions Run Game Coordinator/Defensive Line) Kacy Rodgers fan, as far as the D-Line coach, so I’m excited. It was fun for me to stay around and be able to see new coaches and watch the growth of the organization.”
On the team signing undrafted rookie free agent Lions S Ian Kennelly and if he pays any special attention to local prospects: “I wouldn’t say pay special attention or anything like that. We like good football players, and he’s a good football player. He came to our local pro day, and he had a really good day that day, so that’s what opened our eyes to him. And of course, you like Detroit kids. Local kids, it’s always a good story.”
