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.
Ravens’ $81 Million Free Agent Loss Called ‘Franchise-Altering Move’