Will Stover | staff writer

It was about to be one of the biggest trades in recent NFL history. On March 6, the Las Vegas Raiders and Baltimore Ravens agreed to send five-time Pro Bowl defensive end Maxx Crosby to Baltimore in exchange for two first-round picks.

For just a moment, the AFC North held claim to another monster — then it all fell apart. The fallout shocked the league and has left teams asking questions about trust, transparency, and what it means to do business in the NFL.

Crosby, 28, had undergone surgery in January to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee following his absence from the final two games of the 2025 season. Despite a successful procedure, his desire to start fresh was clear. Crosby was seen struggling to hold his emotions together in a nearly 13-minute video in which he said his goodbyes to Raider Nation.

On his podcast, The Rush with Maxx Crosby, he described the experience as “probably one of the most unique, crazy, wild, up-and-down rollercoasters I’ve ever been a part of.” He arrived at the Ravens facility only to find that he didn’t see General Manager Eric DeCosta for the first five hours he was there. After lots of testing, DeCosta finally sat him down. 

“One of our doctors has concerns with the results, with your knee,” DeCosta said, according to Crosby’s account on The Rush. “Some of them are concerned about the future.”

Crosby, confused, called his surgeon, Dr. Neal ElAttrache, who told him his knee was in great shape. Even Crosby’s agent, CJ LaBoy, confirmed in a Yahoo Sports interview that Crosby was “ahead of schedule” in his recovery and should be able to return to his dominant full force come the 2026 season. 

But none of it mattered. Shortly after a Ravens staff member reassured Crosby the deal was still moving forward, LaBoy called to tell him Baltimore had pulled out entirely. The Ravens sent him home.

“The Ravens didn’t violate the letter of the law but the spirit of it with this last second retraction,” said Dave Bryan, co-host of The Terrible Podcast, “but it happens. The Ravens have done it before, we’ve seen it before in the NFL, and it’s something you have to watch out for.”

Neither the Raiders nor the Ravens offered much in explanations when the deal fell through, as both put out statements outlining that the deal fell through and there would be no further comment at the time. Interestingly, Las Vegas immediately put the blame on Baltimore, stating that Baltimore had “backed out of the trade agreement for Maxx Crosby” before there was any publicly available information.

The numbers tell a different story. Crosby had four years and $112.9 million left on his deal in Vegas. Trey Hendrickson, the pass rusher Baltimore signed less than 24 hours after backing out, got a four-year deal worth $112 million. The Ravens called off the trade Tuesday night and had a replacement under contract by Wednesday morning.

“The Ravens didn’t just call off the wedding,” Bryan said, “they called off the wedding and married someone else the next morning.”

The situation has shone a negative light on the Ravens, begging the question — how can Baltimore be trusted? When two teams agree to a trade before the official start of the league year, it functions as nothing more than a verbal agreement. In other words, nothing is official until free agency opens. 

The quick turnaround also gave all NFL players and free agents a dangerous reminder about the league’s operations — it’s a business, not a family. By signing contracts, players are more or less owned by the team, allowing the front office to send players away, release or take away their playing time, of course all within the bounds of their contract.

 At the end of the day, it’s the general manager, owner and other front office members that have the final say about a player’s destination, not the player themselves. 

By backing out, the Ravens set a dangerous precedent — if more teams start calling off trades because they find better options, the NFL could have a serious problem and no way to penalize teams for doing so.

For Las Vegas, the path forward does not look promising. The pass rusher market has largely moved on, with the Panthers signing Jaelan Phillips for $120 million and the Commanders snagging Odafe Oweh for $100 million, making another multiple first round pick offer unlikely in the near future.

For now, Crosby has made his mindset clear. 

“Everything happens for a reason. I’m a Raider. I’m back,” he posted on X. 

Whether Baltimore’s reputation recovers is still up for debate, as completely backing out of a trade deal and finding a replacement 24 hours later is unheard of in the modern NFL. But for Crosby, he’s now back with the team he’s stayed committed to for six years. 

Will Stover can be reached at stoverw1@duq.edu