The Las Vegas Raiders signed Tyler Linderbaum to a big contract this offseason, and he showed why in their opener.
The Las Vegas Raiders paid center Tyler Linderbaum a boatload of money on free agency, and they reset the center market in the process. They were widely criticized for this, first because they didn’t get any other offensive linemen, and also because they failed to address a crucial need by picking up a top wide receiver.
To coach Klint Kubiak, however, none of this matters. He got the guy he wanted, and Sam Warren of The Athletic did an intriguing piece on why Linderbaum is worth the money.
The contract was for three years, $81 million, and Kubiak is “really glad we have him.”
There are three reasons for this from Sunday’s 27-13 win over the Miami Dolphins: (1) Linderbaum helped keep quarterback Cousins upright, as he wasn’t sacked at all (2) He didn’t allow a single pressure, per TruMedia (3) he helped open some of those interior rushing lanes that allowed RB Ashton Jeanty to gain over 100 yards.
But there’s more to be done, per Linderbaum.
“I thought we left a lot out there,” Linderbaum said. “I think we can do more. So, proud of Game 1, but we’ve got a bunch more ball games left.”
A lot of people know Linderbaum’s good, but they don’t necessarily know why he’s good. Kubiak explained this by noting two qualities that don’t require burying the lede with X’s and O’s.
“He’s a really good athlete,” Kubiak said. “He’s a premier athlete at his position, and then to play center, you’ve got to be the smartest guy on the field. So, he gets everybody on the same page. He plays with great effort, plays with great athleticism.”
His athleticism showed on the Raiders first touchdown drive, per Warren. Linderbaum handled defenisve lineman Zeek Biggers after a shotgun snap to Cousins in the red zone, and he realized that Miami was setting up Chop Robinson to get a free shot at Cousins with a stunt they were running.
Linderbaum made an athletic play to do it dropping one of his legs at a 180 degree angle, then getting both hands on Robinson to drive him out of the throwing lane. The result was a completion to receiver Jack Bech.
The key was understanding the protection, which Linderbaum does as well as anyone. He, guard Spencer Burford and left tackle Kolton Miller were all manning up on the Dolphins across the line from them, but when the stunt looped it became Linderbaum’s responsibility to handle Robinson.
“And then that’s NFL football for you,” Linderbaum said. “It’s a game of inches, so you try to get a hand on the guy. And what a great play by Kirk and Jack to find the end zone.”
The effort happened on one of Jeanty’s early runs, when he delivered a double pancake block. He called it an example of “setting the tone,” and for the Raiders it was an example of how to play winning football that they haven’t seen in a while.
