Ravens Pivoting to Trey Hendrickson After Failed Maxx Crosby Trade:...

The NFL world stopped on a dime when the Las Vegas Raiders announced that the Baltimore Ravens "have backed out" of their previously agreed-upon trade involving star defensive end Maxx Crosby. The Raiders didn't offer further comment, but The Athletic's Dianna Russini reported that Crosby "did not pass his physical today." Of note, Crosby underwent meniscus repair surgery in January. On Friday night, Russini reported that the Ravens were finalizing a trade to acquire Crosby from the Raiders in exchange for two first-round picks — something Baltimore had never done before. "After Maxx Crosby underwent testing today at the Ravens’ facility, Baltimore made the decision as an organization that it could not move forward with the deal based on the results of the medical," Russini additionally reported on Tuesday night. "Crosby will remain a Raider for now, as other teams can weigh any potential risk that comes with trading for him." Trades and free-agent contracts cannot be finalized until the start of the new league year on Wednesday at 4 p.m. EST, and this serves as a reminder of that. But Crosby had posted a video saying goodbye to Vegas and hello to Baltimore. It seemed official. Until it wasn't. Now, Crosby is still a Raider, and the Ravens reclaim their first-round picks. It's unclear where Crosby, the Ravens, or the Raiders go from here, but NFL insider Jordan Schultz stirred the pot shortly after news broke of the failed Crosby trade. Schultz posted on X (formerly Twitter): "Text from a GM: 'Baltimore is gonna sign Trey Hendrickson. Watch.'" Hendrickson, 31, became an unrestricted free agent after the Cincinnati Bengals declined to place the franchise tag on him last week. Crosby and Hendrickson have been unanimously considered the best available options at defensive end, although Crosby was only considered available because of trade speculation. The Ravens will need to do something to save face after losing out on Crosby and losing nine unrestricted free agents since the legal tampering period opened on Monday. But if the only reason the Ravens won't have Crosby is that he failed a physical, they might have pause about committing big money to Hendrickson, who only played seven games last year and underwent core muscle surgery last December. On Tuesday morning, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that Hendrickson had been "in contact with a number of teams," but Hendrickson wanted to meet or exceed the $30 million or $40 million per year. Those numbers came from the Carolina Panthers agreeing to a four-year, $120 million contract with pass rusher Jaelan Phillips and the Houston Texans re-signing defensive end Danielle Hunter on a one-year, $40.1 million extension. (Schefter reported on Tuesday that the NFL "disapproved" Hunter's contract when submitted to the league office, so it will need to be redone.) According to Russini, Hendrickson is "expected to make a formal decision tomorrow." Before his injury-riddled 2025 campaign, Hendrickson recorded back-to-back 17.5-sack seasons in 2023 and 2024. He led the league in sacks and was named an All-Pro in 2024. The Cowboys have been heavily linked to Hendrickson and reportedly narrowly missed out on trading for Crosby. Everything is back on the table now.