The Baltimore Ravens found plenty of upgrades to bolster their roster this offseason. Their defense looks vastly better, and for once, the front office actually built what looks to be a very good guard duo. However, it’s hard to ignore a blatantly obvious weakness.
One of the biggest losses of any team in free agency was the Ravens losing Tyler Linderbaum. Linderbaum took his talents to the Las Vegas Raiders, signing a massive three-year, $81 million contract, which was unheard of for a center. Two months later, Baltimore still doesn’t have a stable replacement for Linderbaum.
It sounds like general manager Eric DeCosta has a plan, though. He’s mentioned the likes of Jovaughn Gwyn, Danny Pinter, and Corey Bullock being potential center options, and briefly mentioned a trade possibility. On Tuesday, ESPN’s Jamison Hensley made it seem like the trade market will be the way to go.
“At this point, it really looks like the Ravens’ starting center is currently on another team’s roster,” Hensley said. “Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta mentioned the possibility of exploring a trade.”
Baltimore Ravens could have big move in the works to fix overwhelming flaw
It’s fair to say that Baltimore may have been caught off guard by Linderbaum heading west. The front office tried tirelessly to get a deal done, even offering him a market-setting deal of their own. Unfortunately, the Raiders had an ace up their sleeve, sending him an offer that Linderbaum simply couldn’t refuse. That left the Ravens scrambling to react, and at this point, it seems they still haven’t figured things out.
Everyone assumed DeCosta would address that hole in the 2026 NFL Draft. Instead, Baltimore didn’t draft a center with any of their 11 picks, as their top two prospects at that spot, Logan Jones and Jake Slaughter, went earlier than expected. Now, it sounds like they’ll be searching the trade market to find the man to step into Linderbaum’s spot.
It was already known that the Ravens would be surfing the trade market based on DeCosta’s post-draft comments, but Hensley’s report reinforces that now, two weeks after the 2026 NFL Draft. Garrett Bradbury is probably the most likely trade target.
While Bradbury recently agreed to a restructured contract with the Chicago Bears, there’s still doubt that he has much of a future in Chicago. They just drafted Logan Jones in the second round. That's some tough competition that he'll be facing.
Even though Chicago dealt a fifth-round pick to the New England Patriots for Bradbury earlier in the offseason, another trade could be on the table. The restructured deal makes him a more appealing target, too. If the Bears are at all open to moving him, Baltimore should look to get involved. He'd probably be the best option they would have.
Admittedly, the Ravens do sound confident in what they currently have at the center spot. They may not be in any rush to strike a trade. However, it’s clear there’s plenty of interest in swinging a trade for a more capable center to start in front of Lamar Jackson.
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