.png)
The Baltimore
Ravens had arguably the
NFL’s best center in 3-time Pro Bowler and former 1st round pick Tyler
Linderbaum … then they watched him walk out the door in free agency.
Linderbaum’s exit via a
3-year, $81 million contract with the Las Vegas
Raiders might sting for a
while in Baltimore. In Las Vegas, it might be 1 of the moves that lifts the
franchise from the NFL’s dregs, with Bleacher
Report’s Moe Moton calling
it not only the NFL’s best offseason move but a “franchise and season-altering
move” moving forward.
“You can
make the case that the Las Vegas Raiders had the best offensive signing of the
offseason, locking three-time Pro Bowler Tyler Linderbaum into a three-year,
$81 million deal,” Moton wrote. “In 2015, the Raiders signed center
Rodney Hudson, who played a big role in solidifying a top offensive line group
dubbed (Derek) Carr Insurance. Linderbaum can do the same for a unit that will
eventually protect No. 1 pick, Fernando Mendoza.”
Tense Negotiations Between Linderbaum &
Ravens
By all accounts, the working relationship between the Ravens and
Linderbaum had grown pretty frosty way before he left town for the largest contract for an interior
offensive lineman in NFL history.
“(The Ravens) have tried to negotiate with (Linderbaum),” NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport said
on February 24. “His agent is very difficult to negotiate with. Neil Cornrich
is the agent and his method is basically not responding.”
Linderbaum played out the final season of his 4-year, $13.23
million rookie contract in 2025 as the Ravens missed the playoffs for the 1st
time since 2021 despite entering the year as Super Bowl contenders.
“ESPN Sources: former Ravens free-agent center Tyler Linderbaum
reached agreement today on a record deal with the Raiders, who are awarding him
with a three-year, $81 million deal that includes $60 million guaranteed and
makes him the highest paid interior offensive lineman in NFL history,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter
wrote on his official X account on March 9. “Before today, Cowboys guard Tyler Smith was
the NFL’s highest-paid interior offensive lineman, with a deal that averaged
$24 million per year. Tyler Linderbaum’s deal averages $27 million per year.”
Rare Center Who Became 1st Round Pick
There aren’t many
centers, ever, who have been 1st round picks in the NFL draft. Linderbaum is one of them, going No.
25 overall in 2022.
The 6-foot-2, 314-pound
Iowa native dominated at the University of Iowa, where he was a 2-time All-Big
Ten pick and was at his very best in his final season, winning the Rimington
Trophy, earning All-American honors, and being named Big Ten Offensive Lineman
of the Year.
Headed into the 2022 NFL draft, NFL draft analyst/guru/shaman/expert Lance Zierlein
compared Linderbaum to none other than Philadelphia Eagles legend,
Super Bowl champion, and future Pro Football Hall of Famer Jason Kelce.
“Teams with certain size standards might pass on him but his
tenacity and talent make him a can’t-miss prospect if matched in the right
scheme,” Zierlein wrote in 2022.
Linderbaum has a unique opportunity with the Raiders and
Mendoza, who is coming off 1 of the greatest seasons in college football
history after leading Indiana to the 1st national championship in program
history and won the Heisman Trophy.
https://heavy.com/sports/nfl/baltimore-ravens/lose-tyler-linderbaum-franchise-altering-move/
