It’s been expected for pretty much the entire offseason. Los Angeles Chargers Pro Bowl center Corey Linsley stepping away from the game after a brilliant decade of play.
That has now come to fruition. The Chargers announced on Wednesday that they have released the 32-year-old center. He is also expected to retire.
“Corey is everything you hope for and more in an NFL player,” Chargers President of Football Operations John Spanos said in a statement, via the team’s official website. “The consummate professional, his mentorship of younger players, work ethic, integrity, leadership, competitive drive and sense of humor all played a role in earning him the ‘C’ on his jersey throughout the entirety of his time with us. And as good of a football player as he is, Corey’s an even better person.”
Linsley indicated earlier in the offseason that it was a 99% certainty he’d hang up his cleats. The former Green Bay Packers fifth-round pick from Ohio State has been dealing with a heart-related medical issue. For Linsley, it’s all about focusing on his family. The Chargers made that clear in their press release.
“To that end, at a time when he and his wife, Anna, were growing their family from two children to four while with the Chargers, they still made it a priority to serve the community as passionate advocates for CASA — work that earned Corey not one, but two Walter Payton Man of the Year nominations during his career,” Spanos continued.
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Los Angeles Chargers Were Preparing For Eventual Corey Linsley Retirement
Head coach Jim Harbaugh and general manager Joe Hortiz saw the writing on the wall here. Los Angeles signed veteran center Bradley Bozeman during NFL free agency.
A sixth-round pick of Hortiz’s former Baltimore Ravens team out of Alabama in 2018, Bozeman has started 77 games in six seasons. He brings a ton of experience with him to the mix in Southern California. That includes working in new Chargers offensive coordinator Greg Roman’s system.
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This is is no small thing. Center is among the most-underrated positions in all of football. A great relationship with the quarterback goes a long way to making things work. Justin Herbert will have had an entire offseason to grow said relationship with Bozeman.
As for Linsley, he joined the Chargers as a big-time free agent signing ahead of the 2021 season. The respected center started all 33 games in which he appeared in three seasons. That included just three a season ago.
He does leave some big shoes to fill. Per Pro Football Focus, Linsley finishes his career with 1,572 consecutive pass-block snaps without yielding a sack. It’s the longest active streak in the NFL.