The jury’s still out on why the Baltimore Ravens backed out of the Maxx Crosby trade with the Las Vegas Raiders. But for a change, it’s quite refreshing to hear Crosby’s side of the story and how things unfolded from his perspective.
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During the latest episode of his podcast, The Rush, Crosby broke down the entire situation. It all started with his agent telling him a move to Baltimore was very likely, with the Raiders set to receive two first-round picks. Crosby did what anyone would do after that. He pulled his wife Rachel aside, blocked out all distractions, and began preparing for a move to Baltimore. A fresh start was clearly something Crosby wanted.
Once he arrived in Charm City on Monday, Crosby met with his new team, worked out and then got ready for his medical. But then things took a turn. The Raiders started making more than a few, notable free agency moves, which caught his attention and seemingly left him with mixed feelings. It perhaps hit him that he was no longer part of a team that was starting to build something strong.
“I’m sitting there, and that Monday night, when I got in and after I worked out, and I’m chilling in the hotel, but I can’t sleep. Like my emotions are everywhere. Bro, every channel, Sportscenter, this, this and that… Raiders making moves, da da da, everything, I couldn’t even open my phone. Everything was Raiders, Raiders, Raiders. I’m like, ‘Damn. Why is this happening? … Leave me alone,'” Crosby recalled.
Then the trade deal fell through, and Crosby was suddenly back in Las Vegas. It was Wednesday around 12:30 when he got home. He took a four-hour nap, then went straight back to the Raiders’ facility to get a workout in. While it’s unclear how he felt internally, being back, the reaction from the team was something else.
Crosby said it felt like they had just seen The Undertaker walk in, like he had risen from the dead and shown up out of nowhere.
“I got right up 4:55 the next morning, got my a** in the building, right back to work. And it was crazy, bro. Maybe four hours of sleep, and I walk back and they were like [seeing] the f**cking Undertaker, and I see everybody again,” Crosby added, before reflecting on whether the reunion was awkward,
“Oh, is it weird? Is it [awkward]? I’m like, ‘Bro, you know how my mind works, like everything happens for a reason, truly. You can never control that, you could have never predicted that… I didn’t know what to say, but I’m like, ‘I’m letting nobody knock my shine, make me feel weird.”
To be fair, no one in the Raiders building would want to make Crosby feel out of place. Why would they? Even after keeping him and making those free agency additions, the team still has over $37.9 million in cap space, along with solid draft capital to further strengthen the roster.
Crosby also shared on the podcast that his rehab is on schedule and he’s expected to be back by training camp. That has to be music to the team’s ears.
