The Baltimore Ravens selected center Tyler Linderbaum with the No. 25 overall pick in the 2022 NFL draft. They had the ability to pick him due to the fact that they moved back into the first round by trading away wide receiver Marquise Brown, who the team sent to the Arizona Cardinals.
Linderbaum is regarded as one of the best center prospects to come out of college in years, but there are some concerns about his overall size and arm length. When asked about how Linderbaum will line up against NFL-sized nose tackles, Baltimore director of player personnel Joe Hortiz talked about multiple aspect of the rookie’s game.
“I think one, the center position, you don’t always have a guy over your hat. Again, a lot of times, you’re free and you’re helping. It’s a lot of combo blocks. But when you watch him, like I tried to show, he can gain leverage on players. He does a good job getting his hands inside off the snap. Anything laterally, he’s going to have an advantage of, because he’s so quick off the ball. Head up, he’s going to have to stay [and] play with good technique early on as he develops his strength. I think all rookie linemen, they come out strong. Some come out a little stronger than others, but you develop your strength. You develop your technique, your leverage and your game, but I think he’ll do a great job. The competitiveness he plays with, the leverage he plays with, and again, it’s very rare for you to be isolated early in the play at center. You’re going to get bumped. Somebody is going to help you. You’re going to get a hand helping you. But he’s going to do a good job. He’s going to, just like all offensive linemen … We watched Bradley Bozeman who is 320 pounds; he’s had some bad moments. They all have some bad moments against big guys. I’ve seen Haloti Ngata chuck Pro Bowlers out of the way. So, it’s not an easy position to play. You have to play 65 [to] 70 snaps a game; you’re going to have a couple losses. It’s rare to pitch a shutout as an offensive lineman, but he’ll do good.”
Hortiz expressed confidence in the team’s new center, and reiterated the fact that Linderbaum will have help off of the snap. Veteran Kevin Zeitler should play a part in that, but the rookie should hopefully be able to hold his own at the position most of the time. Nobody is perfect, but Linderbaum will have very high expectations for his rookie season, assuming he is the one to start at center.