The Baltimore Ravens backed out of the Maxx Crosby trade with the Las Vegas Raiders, and now we all know why. The Ravens have signed free agent pass rusher Trey Hendrickson to a four-year contract worth a base of $112 million and the possibility to get up to $120 million.
The details of the contract Hendrickson got from the Ravens confirm what Raiders fans have been feeling all along: The Ravens got cold feet on the price of the trade, not on the status of Maxx Crosby's surgically repaired knee.
Everyone in the entire NFL world has been calling foul on the way the Ravens have gone about this, and the deal they just gave Hendrickson is further proof of their shady business dealings.
Raiders fans shaking their heads in disgust after seeing Trey Hendrickson's contract with Ravens
the Ravens had buyer's remorse over trading 2 first-round picks (something they've never done before) for Maxx Crosby plus his $65M in cap hits the next 2 years...
— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) March 11, 2026
they saw Trey Hendrickson's asking price fall after he couldn't agree to a deal in the first 2 days of legal…
The Ravens have been getting called out by even members of the media who typically choose to remain diplomatic because of the sources they have with all 32 teams. Even the way the Raiders worded the press release about the Ravens being the team to back out of the trade is indicative that the way Baltimore went about this was as bad as it gets.
And now, Hendrickson's contract proves they are screwing the Raiders over because they saw a chance at a "better" overall deal. Instead of getting Maxx Crosby at a base contract value of $112.93 million over the next four seasons, plus giving up two first-round picks, the Ravens now get to keep their first-round picks and give Hendrickson a four-year contract with a base value of $112 million.
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The Ravens had never traded a 1st-round pick for a player in their franchise's history before acquiring Crosby from the Raiders. Clearly, they got cold feet on giving up that kind of prime NFL Draft real estate two years in a row, and decided the opportunity to keep their picks and sign Hendrickson (after his price went down) was preferable to trading for Crosby.
The Ravens had plenty of knowledge about Crosby's knee operation and recovery when they made the trade in the first place. Crosby's knee was examined by a number of doctors, and it's been abundantly clear that he is going to be ready for camp later this offseason.
The Ravens' decision to basically fail him on a physical can only be explained by the fact that they didn't want to give up their draft picks when they found out they could get Hendrickson at a similar price before the legal negotiating period ended.
The Raiders can only hope that the league will take action at some point to make an example out of the Ravens for doing this. It isn't just the Ravens and Raiders affected, because that trade was the first big domino to fall before teams started filling needs in other ways.