The Baltimore Ravens can’t be too hyped after their Week 3 win over the Dallas Cowboys. As Lamar Jackson said, “This is the start of the season,” and there’s a long way to go. They’re already facing major adversity at center, too.
Jovaughn Gwyn and Ethan Pocic were both carted off the field on Sunday, and Jesse Minter’s update on Monday indicated they’re expected to be long-term injuries. This comes over a month after Danny Pinter got injured, landing on season-ending IR with a torn patellar tendon.
For now, it sounds like the answer will be pushing Vega Ioane over to center for Week 4. He looked pretty decent in that spot in relief of Pocic, but how will this team adjust moving forward?
Here are three directions the Ravens could go in amid this unfortunate injury wave.
3 options for Baltimore Ravens’ offensive line amid center crisis
Move Vega Ioane to center, start Andrew Vorhees at guard
There’s a realistic shot that Baltimore’s answer to this is doing…nothing. Vega Ioane showed he can be competent at center. His snaps were close enough to the target, and the blocking looked the best it’s been at the NFL level.
Ioane practiced as the team’s emergency center this past offseason, so the Ravens clearly had faith in him taking over those duties in a disaster scenario. It paid off in Week 3, and it could continue paying off with more experience at the position.
In this case, who takes over at right guard? It’d be between Andrew Vorhees and Emery Jones Jr., and signs point to Vorhees being that guy.
Vorhees played at right guard once Ioane moved to center in Rio. He also has the experience over Jones, and that could be the deciding factor. In a worst-case scenario like the one Baltimore is going through right now, experience is everything.
Sign guard Kevin Zeitler, move Vega Ioane to center
Speaking of experience, how about giving Ioane the perfect partner in crime in Kevin Zeitler? This is another instance where the Ravens would decide to have Ioane at center, but instead of an in-house option, sign a proven, Pro Bowl name like Zeitler. The offensive line would look way better.
Somehow, someway, Zeitler is still a free agent. It doesn’t really make sense. Maybe he’s just waiting for a contender to have a starting spot open up, though. And that’s what appears to be happening in Charm City.
This could be a return to Baltimore for Zeitler. He was extremely impressive as a Raven from 2021 to 2023, and he was still playing at a high level in 2025, posting a 74.5 overall grade, per Pro Football Focus. Even at age 36, he’s a starting-caliber piece.
Trade for center Lloyd Cushenberry, leave Vega Ioane at guard
The Buffalo Bills have plenty of depth along their interior offensive line. That includes Lloyd Cushenberry, who is the backup center to Connor McGovern. Before joining the Bills, Cushenberry appeared in 80 games, all as a starter at center.
Cushenberry has had more downs than ups in his NFL career, but again, experience starting in the trenches is everything here. The Ravens are going through a center crisis; I don’t think they’ll be picky about Cushenberry’s flaws. They don’t have time to really worry about that. 80 starts is 80 starts.
Keeping Ioane at guard also feels like the better decision for his development. This is the guy who has All-Pro potential. Getting all the rookie rust off as a guard would be smarter in the long run. And he’s already playing slightly out of position at right guard—he’s a left guard by nature.
If the Ravens can net him for a late-round selection, Cushenberry could be their guy.
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