The Baltimore Ravens aren’t going to successfully make it through the 2026 NFL season if they don’t find a stable answer to their center question. Through OTAs, the spot remains unknown.
While Baltimore signed Jovaughn Gwyn and Danny Pinter in free agency, you simply can’t trust either of them at this moment. The team has made it known it’s an open competition and they’re rotating guys, but after losing a three-time Pro Bowler in Tyler Linderbaum, it’s incredibly underwhelming seeing what’s available right now.
The Ravens might have a solution, though. Eric DeCosta has kept the door open for a trade, and there might be a very strong candidate on the trade block: Garrett Bradbury. He’s been matched with Baltimore this offseason, and most recently, The Athletic’s Jeff Zrebiec noted the possibility of acquiring him on Glenn Clark Radio. A big reason? Bradbury’s connection with Dwayne Ledford.
.@JeffZrebiec on Center: "I keep coming back to Garrett Bradbury...played under Dwayne Ledford at NC State... Patriots went to the Super Bowl w/ him... He's solid, that's fine after improving at LG + RG. Are the Bears giving him up? I think you'll have to overpay." #RavensFlock
— Glenn Clark (@GlennClarkRadio) June 4, 2026
Baltimore Ravens could solve their overwhelming center need with a logical reunion
The fact that the Ravens might have to overpay the Chicago Bears in a deal for Garrett Bradbury might be a tough reality to come to terms with. Eric DeCosta never loves the idea of having to trade draft picks, but at this point, it’d be more than worth it. This team might be a starting-caliber center away from being true Super Bowl contenders, and Bradbury would solve that issue. He was just made a Super Bowl appearance with the New England Patriots last year after all.
The deciding factor in this trade could be Dwayne Ledford’s relationship with the 30-year-old. Baltimore’s new offensive line coach helped develop Bradbury at NC State from 2016 to 2018, and in 2018, Bradbury was named an All-American. He was then drafted by the Minnesota Vikings at No. 18 overall in the 2019 NFL Draft. Clearly, Ledford can get the most out of him.
It’s also hard to ignore Ledford’s impact in some of the Ravens’ decisions this offseason. The Jovaughn Gwyn signing has Ledford’s fingerprints all over it, as the two were paired together with the Atlanta Falcons from 2023 to 2025. Vega Ioane, who became the team’s first-round selection in the 2026 NFL Draft, also caught Ledford’s eye from day one.
With that influence, could Ledford sway DeCosta into making one more impact addition? It’s certainly a possibility. The need for a center is already close to drastic, and getting one of Bradbury’s caliber, who has seven years of experience and 105 starts under his belt, makes perfect sense.
It’s also pretty obvious how much of a difference a strong starting center could make when placed in front of two-time MVP Lamar Jackson. The offense could go from elite to utterly unstoppable.
If none of Jovaughn Gwyn, Danny Pinter, Corey Bullock, and Nick Dawkins separate themselves in the center competition this offseason, then the idea of dealing for Bradbury becomes all the more tantalizing. It could quickly become a must-make move. And Ledford’s connection with him makes the potential pairing almost impossible to ignore.
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