Ravens' Jesse Minter Confirms Center Will Still be Competition

The Baltimore Ravens needed a starting center, and they presumably got that in former Cleveland Browns center Ethan Pocic. After tearing his Achilles in 2025, the lineman has joined the team and could be the favorite to land the starting position.

While Pocic may be the current favorite, he is not guaranteed the center position. Ravens head coach Jesse Minter confirmed there will still be a battle to determine the starter in 2026.

"This is a guy that's played a ton of football. Um, 97 career starts. Um, he's played in the AFC North. He's played in some similar schematic things, I would say," Minter said of Pocic.

Baltimore signing Pocic made perfect sense due to his 97 career starts at center. The most-experienced next to that is Danny Pinter, who has 10 career starts at center.

Pinter and Jovaughn Gwyn were the two favorites during minicamp, as they both took snaps at center. Corey Bullock dealt with a minor injury and was not in the mix.

Minter indicated that Pocic is a solid player, but he is still excited to see the competition at the center position.

"Just a guy to add into the mix, you know, and very still that does not like lower my excitement or standard of the guys that we already have and that they can't be the starting center, too," Minter said.

Minter has spoken openly about competition, and now the Ravens have found themselves in an advantageous position regarding their center position.

Even if Pocic runs away with the competition, the Ravens will have solid backups in Pinter, Gwyn, and Bullock. Additionally, all may be angling to land the starting position, so they will work harder to do just that.

To Baltimore's credit, the team has made strides in bringing in offensive line help, with Gwyn, Pinter, and John Simpson being the notable additions. Rookie guard Vega Ioane was also drafted to act as another anchor on the line. 

Protecting Lamar Jackson and aiding the run game are integral to the Ravens success, so it makes sense why general manager Eric DeCosta has made it a point to expand the line in such a way. Losing Tyler Linderbaum was also something the organization may not have expected, leaving the team reeling for a replacement.

While Pocic isn't a consensus top 10 center in the NFL, he is as solid as they come. He is also not likely near Linderbaum in terms of his talent, but he is again a veteran who can be trusted to be the first contact on the line.

It will be very interesting to see if any of the listed players can beat out Pocic, but it might also be guaranteed that he will be handing off the ball to Jackson in 2026.