Bradley Bozeman, a consistent starter along the Ravens’ offensive line who developed into one of the NFL’s better centers last season, has agreed to a one-year deal with the Panthers, Carolina announced Friday. Terms of the contract were not announced.
His departure means the Ravens will have to start over at center in 2022, when they’ll have their third Week 1 starter in as many seasons. The team has two in-house candidates — the versatile Patrick Mekari and reserve Trystan Colon — and could also address the position in free agency or the draft. Former Cleveland Browns starter JC Tretter is available, and Iowa’s Tyler Linderbaum is considered a first-round talent.
Bozeman, a sixth-round pick in 2018, started all but one game over the past three seasons in Baltimore and appeared in 62 games overall. In 2021, his first season as the Ravens’ starting center, Pro Football Focus rated him the NFL’s No. 11 player at the position. According to ESPN, Bozeman had the NFL’s second-best pass-block win rate and seventh-best run-block win rate.
With the Ravens’ tight salary cap situation, and more pressing needs elsewhere, Bozeman seemed to understand that his future was elsewhere as he entered free agency. In an emotional end-of-season news conference in January, his voice quavered and his eyes reddened as he addressed a possible contract extension.
“We’ll see what happens,” he said. “I’ve been very blessed. This place has been so amazing to me, everyone involved, from the ground up. From all my teammates, to the coaches to — ” Bozeman stopped to collect himself — “to the fans, everyone. It’s been a great place for me. So just very grateful.”
Bozeman, who started his Ravens career at left guard, was twice named the team’s nominee for the Walter Payton Man of the Year award, recognizing his philanthropic work and community contributions. Bozeman and his wife, Nikki, have raised awareness of and funding for anti-bullying and food insecurity causes as part of their charitable organization.
“We’ve been given a really big platform,” Bozeman said in December. “We’ve been very blessed, and to be able to use this platform for good is what we want to do. That’s what we strive to do, because we’ve been given this amazing gift to be able to reach all these people, to reach all these kids, to have a common interest with people. We want to use that in the best possible way we can.”
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