According to SNY’s Connor Hughes, league sources expect the Giants to target Ravens C Tyler Linderbaum as a free agent in March.
Linderbaum is expected to be one of the top free agents available and a reunion with Giants HC John Harbaugh if he doesn’t return to the Ravens would make a lot of sense.
It would continue the Baltimore-New York pipeline that has been established and will likely last for a bit. The Giants also need to upgrade their offensive line and Linderbaum would be a big boost over incumbent C John Michael Schmitz, who’s entering a contract year.
Hughes says his sources expect Linderbaum to command a contract worth more than $18 million per year, which would reset the market at his position. Because of how the franchise tag is calculated, the Ravens are unlikely to franchise Linderbaum, meaning he has a path to maximizing his value on the open market.
Linderbaum, 25, was a three-year starter at Iowa and earned first-team All-American honors in 2021 and 2020, to go along with a first-team All-Big Ten selection in 2021, second-team All-Big Ten in 2020, and an honorable mention in 2019.
The Ravens used the No. 25 overall pick on him in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft. He was entering the final year of a four-year, $13,238,286 contract that included a $6,807,844 signing bonus when the Ravens declined his fifth-year option, projected to be worth $23.4 million fully guaranteed for the 2026 season.
Linderbaum is slated to be an unrestricted free agent in 2026.
In 2025, Linderbaum appeared in all 17 games for the Ravens and started all 17 games at center. Pro Football Focus had him graded as the No. 4 center out of 37 qualifying players.
We have him included in our Top 100 2026 Free Agents list.
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