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Green Bay Packers center Corey Linsley isn’t a name brought up often for the Cincinnati Bengals as a free-agent option.
But maybe it’s worth a look. Linsley, going on 30 years old, enters free agency after a first-team All-Pro nod and is one of the best in the NFL at his position — he’ll hit the open market because of cap problems in Green Bay.
Given Cincinnati’s bigger needs are at tackle and guard, plus the money Linsley will make, he doesn’t come up often in the same breath as the Bengals.
But NFL.com’s Gil Brandt just did so, tagging the Bengals as a good fit for what he calls a “boom or bust” free agent:
“The bust scenario: The risk here is relatively low, but Linsley did lose time with a knee injury last season, and he is entering his age-30 season. I don’t personally think this will prove to be the case, but it’s conceivable that he begins the decline phase of his career next season, which would represent a disappointment for whichever team pays top dollar to land him.”
Of course, the upside is Linsley gets right back to being an elite player. He missed three games last year but otherwise had not missed a game since 2016. He was an All-Pro last year while putting up an 89.9 PFF grade and there’s nothing to suggest he’ll suddenly nosedive because he hit the age of 30.
Should the Bengals put out a huge contract for Linsley, Trey Hopkins could easily switch over to guard. Hopkins is not guaranteed to be an upgrade at guard after predictably breaking out at center — and he’s coming back from a season-ending injury — but it’s hard to complain about adding a talent like Linsley.
The stability Linsley could provide for the entire line and his experience working with Aaron Rodgers and then shifting to Joe Burrow would be, in a word, key. Add a tackle like Penei Sewell too and the line dramatically improves. If nothing else, it’s an option to consider as legal tampering gets set to begin Monday.
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