The Raiders have invested heavily in their offensive line over the last two years, but no position along the O-line in Las Vegas received a bigger boost in the offseason than the center position.
In March, the Raiders snatched Tyler Linderbaum from the Ravens, and apparently the Commanders, too, making him the highest-paid center in the league,
But the return on Linderbaum’s three-year, $81 million deal has been a mixed bag to this point in the season.
On Sunday against the Bills, Linderbaum turned in arguably his worst game of the season, and one play in particular has been making rounds on the internet.
It can happen to anyone, but these are the kind of plays (below) you prefer not to see from the crown jewel of your offseason additions…
Pro Football Focus on Linderbaum
For Sunday’s efforts, Pro Football Focus gave Linderbaum lowest offensive lineman grade on the team (46.8), and their analytics indicate he was particularly ineffective as a run blocker (29.8).
On the season, PFF ranks Linderbaum as the no. 22 center in the league with an overall grade of 58.8.
For the sake of reference, Linderbaum’s 2026 grade is uncomfortably close to the grade Pro Football Focus gave Jordan Meredith a year ago (57.7), and slightly higher than Alex Cappa a year ago (53.5).
Like everyone along the Raiders’ offensive line, Linderbaum is learning a new system under head coach Klint Kubiak, and six games is a small sample size.
For that reason, it’s too early to hit the panic button. But without question, the Raiders need to get more consistency from the center position going forward.
Raiders still trying to sort out the guard position
The sense last week was that Caleb Rogers might sneak into the starting lineup against the Bills, and the popular opinion on the outside was that Rogers would replace Spencer Burford at left guard.
It turned out on Sunday that Jackson Powers-Johnson drew the short straw at right guard and Spencer Burford remained in the lineup.
Rogers didn’t overwhelm with his play on against the Bills, but the coaching staff may have more patience with Rogers considering he was drafted by John Spytek and seems to have made a solid impression on the coaching staff in their short time together.
x: @raidersbeat
When your center gets consistently run over, I would think so.
Are you eff-ing crazy? I have seen with my two eyes Linderbaum block people 10-to-15 yards down the field. He blocked one Chiefs defensive until the whistle was blown. As a former linebacker in high school, the most humiliating thing is having blocking you until whistle blows. You can’t get off the block and make a tackle, or disengage to chase the play. So, No there is not a problem with Tyler Linderbaum and you should watch him closely. Because if every offensive lineman gave his effort every week, there would be offensive line issue.
Lindebaum had a bad game, but I remember what Bill Polian once said. He didn’t want to rely on free agency cuz in his opinion it always took a year for them to adjust to the new team
This fool is Crazy, if every lineman gave the same effort that Linderbaum gives every week there would be ‘No’ offensive lineman issue on this Raider team . He is blocking people like a maniac whistle to whistle. Blocking people down field up to 20 yards. So, you Rudy-Poo Jebrony sportswriter should know your role and shut your mouth.
I have watched the Kansas City Chiefs game and the Buffalo Bills game. And, most consistent lineman I have seen is, Tyler Linderbaum the center. He blocked a Chiefs defensive player down the field 20 yards. You could see the defensive player get frustrated. In the Bills game he was blocking two and three people on the same play. No, there is not a problem with Tyler Linderbaum. There maybe weakness at guard, and their tackles may take plays off but that’s the extent of the offensive line problems I witnessed.