The Baltimore Ravens’ decision to overturn the Maxx Crosby trade came as a big surprise to the NFL world. It’s not something you see very often in football, or sports in general. Because of that, the Ravens are now under heavy scrutiny, especially the team’s GM. And now, Stephen A. Smith has also weighed in.
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According to reports, the Ravens found an issue with Crosby’s left knee during his physical. Crosby had surgery on his left meniscus to end this past season, and the Raiders even shut him down for the final two games. The Ravens reportedly felt the injury could come back to haunt them, so they decided to pull out of the deal and keep the two first-round picks they had planned to send to Vegas.
However, many fans, analysts, and even other NFL teams found the move suspicious. They believe the physical concern was used as a way to back out of the trade so the Ravens could pursue Trey Hendrickson on a cheaper deal. Stephen A. was among those raising questions, and he had a few things to say about Ravens GM Eric DeCosta.
“He did nothing wrong in terms of his decision as a GM to make the move. He had every right to make the move. But how you handle it matters,” Stephen A. began on First Take.
It’s quite true that DeCosta had every right to double back on the trade. Even if Crosby had passed the physical, DeCosta still could have cited a change in plans, financial concerns, or something completely different. But he decided to fall back on the knee issue, which he supposedly would have known about before trading for the Raiders star.
Stephen A. naturally thinks that DeCosta should have been more truthful about the decision to nix the Crosby trade.
“You literally could sit up there and say, ‘We changed our minds. We reflected on this, and we don’t want to do this because we want to keep these two first-round picks, and we had an opportunity to get Trey Hendrickson, and this is a business decision,’” Stephen A professed. “Had you done it like that, it might not have been liked. But in the same breath, it’s not necessarily corrupt, sleezy, and shady.”
“[Eric DeCosta] did nothing wrong in terms of his decision as a GM to make the move. … But how you handle it matters.”
—@stephenasmith on how Ravens GM Eric DeCosta handled the Maxx Crosby trade pic.twitter.com/lr8TUBYqv7
— First Take (@FirstTake) March 12, 2026
Perhaps the most controversial thing the Ravens did after canceling the Crosby trade was immediately going out and signing Hendrickson. Within 12 hours, to be exact. They gave the former Bengal a four-year, $112 million contract, and it was a clear response to the Crosby news. They play the same position and now make a very similar amount of money.
Around the league, GMs are reportedly not happy with the cancelled trade. They felt as though the Ravens got “cold feet” or “buyer’s remorse” after making the deal for Crosby. It’ll be interesting to see if this affects how teams conduct business with them in the future.
All in all, Stephen A. is probably right. The Ravens should’ve been more up front with why they backed out of the Crosby trade. They aren’t fooling anyone by citing his knee that he just injured as a reason why. Now, they will most likely suffer from this.
Nevertheless, at the end of the day, both Crosby and the Ravens seem okay with how things turned out. The Raiders ended up having a hot start to free agency, and now Crosby’s retention on defense could make their unit great. Meanwhile, as mentioned, the Ravens signed Hendrickson and get to keep their two first-round picks for upcoming drafts.
