Lloyd Cushenberry
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MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - NOVEMBER 09: Tyler Linderbaum #64 of the Baltimore Ravens looks on during warmups before the game against the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium on November 09, 2025 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by David Berding/Getty Images)
The Cleveland Browns have a long way to go to rebuild the offensive line, but they may be able to take a major step toward that end in the coming days while also hurting one of their primary rivals.
Three-time Pro Bowl center Tyler Linderbaum is going to be a free agent on March 11 if he doesn’t re-up with the Baltimore Ravens before then.
Baltimore chose last May not to pick up the fifth-year option on Linderbaum’s deal, which existed for the franchise as he is a former first-round pick, because of the $23.4 million price tag attached to it. However, that plan has backfired given how well Linderbaum has played and how strong the market is for the center position specifically.
Albert Breer of SI authored a mailbag on Thursday, March 5, naming several NFL teams potentially in the mix for Linderbaum’s services this offseason, including the Browns.
“The Ravens would like to keep him, and I see the Lions, Bears, Chargers, Giants and Browns as teams that should be in the fight to get him,” Breer wrote.
Courtney Cronin, who covers Chicago for ESPN, contended on Thursday that Linderbaum could set the all-time record for annual average salary at the center position, which approaches the $23 million Baltimore hoped to avoid paying him on the fifth-year team option it declined less than one year ago.
“League sources believe [Linderbaum] will be the highest-paid interior offensive lineman with a deal north of $22 million per year,” Cronin wrote.
Browns Have Added Only Right Tackle Tytus Howard Thus Far in Offensive Line Rebuild
Tytus Howard #71 of the Houston Texans was traded to the Cleveland Browns
GettyRight tackle Tytus Howard of the Cleveland Browns.
New Browns head coach Todd Monken spent the last three seasons as the offensive coordinator for the Ravens with Linderbaum serving as his center all three years and earning Pro Bowl nods all three times.
Linderbaum’s familiarity with Monken and previous success in his system could play a role in the 25-year-old’s decision. That said, Cleveland will probably also need to come in at the top of the list with its offer sheet to draw the longtime winner, first at the University of Iowa and then in Baltimore, to a rebuild with a Browns team that doesn’t profile as a contender to finish next season with an above .500 record.
Cleveland may need to replace the entirety of its offensive front this spring, unless perennial Pro Bowl guard Joel Bitonio decides to return for one last hoorah. The only position the team has addressed on the line so far is right tackle, which it did by acquiring Tytus Howard from the Houston Texans earlier this offseason in exchange for a fifth-round draft pick.
Tyler Linderbaum Addition Could Prove Huge for Shedeur Sanders, Other Young Browns’ QBs
Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders is bonding with new head coach Todd Monken.
GettyCleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders.
Linderbaum’s presence could be worth any extra money the Browns might need to spend given how valuable an experienced and talented center can be to the development of an inexperienced quarterback.
Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel, both rookies in 2025, remain on the roster. Meanwhile, the Browns recently met with Alabama signal-caller Ty Simpson and could potentially draft him with one of their two first-round picks (Nos. 6 and 24).
Another potential play under center in Cleveland is a trade with the Indianapolis Colts for Anthony Richardson, who is just 8-7 in 15 starts across his first three NFL seasons.