The Washington Commanders left Owings Mills with a fresh reminder that the interior of their offensive line is still very much a work in progress.
During Wednesday’s joint practice with the Baltimore Ravens, Washington’s line spent most of the afternoon under pressure. The problems were made worse by the absences of left tackle Laremy Tunsil (triceps), center Nick Allegretti (calf) and right guard Sam Cosmi, who was out with an illness, according to The Washington Post and The Athletic. Sixth-round rookie Matt Gulbin handled center for the full session, while Julian Good-Jones and undrafted rookie Tanoa Togiai took turns at right guard.
Baltimore’s front made the Commanders pay. Pressure was getting home before routes could fully develop, forcing Jayden Daniels into checkdowns, scrambles and throws off his back foot. NFL.com noted one account that described it as the worst the offense has looked in years, and Daniels didn’t try to paint over it.
“Not the best day that I thought we could have had, just from all around, for myself to everybody else. But these are opportunities that you get to learn from.” - Jayden Daniels, after practice, as reported by SI Commanders
There was one brief flash of relief late in the day. Daniels escaped pressure and found rookie Antonio Williams for a touchdown in the end zone, which sent Commanders players spilling off the sideline at the Under Armour Performance Center. But that was the exception, not the story of the practice.
By Thursday, the rough outing had also pulled an old free-agency conversation back into focus: center Tyler Linderbaum, now with Las Vegas on a record contract.
A Commanders-focused account, brandon (@JayDanielsMVP), posted a clip of analyst Lake Lewis Jr. from the Rambling with Rio podcast, in which Lewis said a source he trusts told him Washington had a “handshake agreement” with Linderbaum before the Raiders made him the highest-paid center in NFL history. The claim is unconfirmed, and no team official, agent or national reporter has independently verified it. Lewis presented it as secondhand.
What is confirmed is the contract itself. Linderbaum agreed in March to a three-year, $81 million deal with Las Vegas that includes $60 million guaranteed, according to The Athletic and NFL.com. The $27 million average annual value reset the center market, with Kansas City’s Creed Humphrey previously at $18 million per year, per CBS Sports.
Washington’s interest in that market was real. After releasing two-year starter Tyler Biadasz, the Commanders were publicly linked to Linderbaum.
Jordan Schultz reported they would “heavily pursue” him if he reached free agency, according to NBC Sports’ player news file. Pro Football Rumors later reported Washington was in the bidding before backing off once Las Vegas pushed the number to $27 million a year.
Lewis’ take, if the rumor carries any weight, is that general manager Adam Peters wasn’t interested in setting a new price at center and instead turned to Allegretti. “If you’re Adam, you don’t want to overpay. So you didn’t,” Lewis said in the same clip.
Whether the Linderbaum rumor is true or not, Wednesday’s practice showed why the conversation is still alive. The Commanders were already short-handed, but the bigger issue was how fragile the middle of the line looked when the backups were forced into heavy duty against a quality front.
Gulbin is a rookie. Good-Jones has barely any regular-season experience.
With Cosmi also out, the right side became a patchwork.
Allegretti is still expected to be the starter at center after Biadasz’s release, but he has not had a clean camp. He strained his calf on Day 1, returned briefly and then sat again with tightness.
The Athletic’s Nicki Jhabvala reported imaging came back clean, while coach Dan Quinn said this week that Allegretti “isn’t there yet,” according to ESPN’s John Keim. Quinn also said the staff is “still digging on” the position.
Washington and Baltimore meet again Friday night in the preseason finale at M&T Bank Stadium, though the starters are not expected to play much. The more meaningful checkpoint comes in Week 1 on Sept. 13 against the Philadelphia Eagles. If Allegretti still isn’t ready and the interior line continues to struggle against a basic four-man rush, a move later in the season would not be a surprise.
For now, Daniels is keeping the focus where it belongs. “I’m never one to go out there and complain about X, Y and Z,” he said, per NFL.com. The film from Owings Mills told the rest of the story.
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