The Las Vegas Raiders announced March 10 the Baltimore Ravens had ‘backed out’ of their agreed trade for star edge rusher Maxx Crosby.
Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta addressed the team’s decision for the first time in a March 11 news conference.
DeCosta explained to reporters he and the team were ‘really excited’ about the possibility of adding Crosby. They simply decided they couldn’t go through with the deal as the trade process unfolded.
‘One of the key things is you bring the player in and you try to get as much information as you can,’ DeCosta explained. ‘We did that and we were not able to complete the process of acquiring a player based on our assessment of the situation.’
DeCosta called the decision ‘tough’ and ‘challenging’ for all parties. He was also adamant that the Ravens did not get cold feet ahead of the trade’s consummation; he was just doing ‘what’s best for the club’ – however disappointing it was for everyone involved.
‘Nobody’s more upset about this than me,’ DeCosta said. ‘Gutted by it, actually. A big regret for me. But we will move on as a football team, and I think there’s many, many opportunities for us to grow as a team.’
DeCosta did not provide additional clarity on exactly what had caused the deal to fall through.
Initial reports indicated a medical issue found during Crosby’s physical examination with the Ravens had derailed the team.
Crosby reportedly played through the injury before being shut down by the Raiders following their Week 15 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. He had surgery to fix the malady following the season, as NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport outlined.
‘Maxx Crosby had surgery to repair his meniscus right around the end of the season,’ Rapoport said on March 10. ‘Meniscus repairs can take three to four months. He was doing well, it was not as major as it could have been.
‘If you trade for Maxx Crosby, you have a belief that he is not going to be fully healthy, but that he’s going to be far enough along where you feel confident that his knee is going to be fine. This decision … is an indication that [the Ravens] do not believe it is going to be fine.’
It was initially reported the Raiders and Ravens had agreed upon terms to send Crosby to Baltimore on March 6. The Ravens were set to send two first-round picks – including the 14th overall selection in the 2026 NFL Draft – to the Raiders to complete the trade.
With the trade nixed by Crosby’s failed physical, both of the picks were returned to the Ravens.
Baltimore didn’t waste any time finding a high-end replacement for Crosby. The Ravens signed former Cincinnati Bengals edge rusher Trey Hendrickson to a four-year deal worth up to $112 million.
DeCosta expressed excitement about bringing Hendrickson into the fold. However, the 54-year-old executive also noted the team had hoped to potentially land both Hendrickson and Crosby as part of its offseason haul.
‘That was definitely a possibility for us. Not to say it would have happened, but definitely something we had contemplated and discussed with Trey.’
Instead, the Ravens will rely on Hendrickson to invigorate a Baltimore pass rush that ranked in the bottom five in sacks produced during the 2025 NFL season (30).
Meanwhile, Crosby is back with the Raiders and will now face questions about whether he will be traded again ahead of his eighth NFL season.
