Just four days after the Las Vegas Raiders agreed to trade star pass rusher Maxx Crosby to the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for two first-round picks, Baltimore has changed its mind.
The Ravens are backing out of their deal to acquire Crosby from the Raiders, CBS Sports NFL insider Jonathan Jones reported on Tuesday evening. The Raiders confirmed this report shortly after on social media.
The Ravens are allowed to do this because the new league year begins Wednesday, March 11 at 4 p.m. ET. No transactions — whether signings or trades — can become official until then. All trades are also pending a physical, and NFL Media reports that Baltimore backed out because of a medical reason.
Crosby underwent surgery on the meniscus in his left knee on Jan. 8. Ian Rapoport reports that Baltimore did not want to invest two first-round picks given what the Ravens’ medical experts found during Crosby’s examination.
This is a fascinating development for a number of reasons. Crosby was shut down by the Raiders with two games remaining in the 2025 regular season due to his knee injury, and it was a decision he “vehemently” disagreed with, according to Fox. This was something that upset Crosby so much, that NFL Media reported it would cause him to evaluate his future with the franchise. Crosby never came out and said he wanted a trade, but there was intense speculation that he wanted out.
When the Raiders shut down Crosby in December, the franchise published a statement which claimed multiple medical professionals recommended the five-time Pro Bowler be sidelined:
“We have made the decision to place Maxx Crosby on the Reserve/Injured list for the remainder of the 2025 season. After deliberate and thorough consultation with multiple top medical professionals, it became clear that this decision is in the best interest of both the franchise and the player. Maxx is the ultimate warrior, and he has fought extremely hard to compete each week with his teammates since injuring his knee mid-season.”
Crosby was expected to need months to recover from his knee surgery. That was obviously understood by the Ravens medical staff. But whatever they found during this physical exam worried them enough to pull out of a blockbuster deal.
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