Free agency and the draft both passed, and the Baltimore Ravens still don’t have a solution at center after losing Tyler Linderbaum in free agency. It’s a massive hole in the middle of the offense.
Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta told WBAL Radio that he’d targeted the center position during the draft, but the board didn’t fall properly to swipe one.
“Obviously, center is a position right now in a state of flux,” he said. “We’re trying to figure that out. We weren’t able to address that in the draft. There were a couple guys that we really liked in the draft at the center position, but the board didn’t fall the right way. Fortunately, we have time. We don’t play games until September. There will be some opportunities for us between now and then to address the center position, whether that’s free agency, other things, a trade, there will be different things that we can do. It just didn’t work out for us this past weekend, but I think that there may be some potential trades we can look at and some other things we can do to address that position.”
The current Ravens options: 2024 undrafted free agent Corey Bullock, who has played 13 career offensive snaps, three at center; Danny Pinter, a spot-starter in Indianapolis, who has started 10 games over six years, with one in 2025; and Jovaughn Gwyn, a Falcons 7th rounder in 2023 who has started zero career games.
DeCosta was asked if Bullock or Pinter could earn the job.
“Well, right now, I’d say for sure,” he said. “Danny’s a guy that’s played some football. He started three or four games last year, I believe. Obviously, we’ve had Corey Bullock. I think the Gwyn kid is a good prospect, as well. We’ll have a plan. I’ve got tremendous confidence in (offensive coordinator) Declan (Doyle) and Dwayne Ledford, our offensive line coach. Their comfort gives me comfort. I’m excited about what this is going to look like. As I said, the hunt goes on. Our scouts do a great job of finding players, looking for talent. We’ll continue to assess the players out there and I’m confident that when September rolls around, we’ll have our best team.”
At this point, getting anything close to Linderbaum’s production is out the window. Now DeCosta is just hoping for a papier-mâché option to fall into his lap for this season. The current free agent pile has been picked over. It’s possible that during camp, a veteran could become available if he’s losing a starting battle – i.e., if second-round rookie Logan Jones clearly outplays Garrett Bradbury in Chicago.
However it plays out, DeCosta is counting on the new coaching staff to make it work, because the options are limited.
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