Eric DeCosta
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Baltimore Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta.
There were only 2 people who could have killed the Baltimore Ravens trade for Las Vegas Raiders edge rusher Maxx Crosby — the same 2 people who made the trade in the 1st place.
One of them is Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti. The other is Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta, who addressed the media on Wednesday, the day after calling off the trade for Crosby, which would have sent the Raiders 2 1st round draft picks in return.
The Raiders announced on social media Tuesday night that the Ravens had informed them they were backing out of the trade, which was announced on Friday night.
The Ravens reportedly backed out because Crosby, who had knee surgery to repair a torn meniscus following the season, failed his physical with the Ravens.
Baltimore moved quickly to replace Crosby on Wednesday, signing All-Pro edge rusher Trey Hendrickson to a 4-year, $112 million contract worth up to $120 million with incentives.
DeCosta addressed the rampant speculation that has come over the last 24 hours following the trade being called off. Mainly regarding the wild theories about the machinations behind why the Ravens did what they did.
“Nobody is more upset by this than me,” DeCosta told the media. “I’m gutted by it. I understand how people would feel that way (about conspiracies). But I have a responsibility to the Ravens.”
One other interesting — and impossible to prove — aspect of the Crosby ordeal is that DeCosta now claims the Ravens initially planned to trade for Crosby and sign Hendrickson to create the NFL’s elite edge rusher combination.
One Part of DeCosta’s Story Hard to Believe
It’s good that DeCosta acknowledged he understood why people might start to think there’s something more than just a failed physical behind the aborted Crosby trade.
Mainly, it’s become clear that the Ravens understood the extent of Crosby’s injury and his recovery timeline before the trade was pulled off — it was public knowledge the Raiders shut Crosby down because of his knee for the final 2 games of the regular season.
“One NFL general manager told me everybody involved in Maxx Crosby trade talks knew he would be out until June/July coming off meniscus surgery,” NFL Network reporter Cameron Wolfe wrote on his official X account on Tuesday night. “Consensus opinion I’ve got from NFL decision makers: Ravens got cold feet & it could impact how other teams work w/ BAL going forward.”