Ravens Signing Trey Hendrickson Adds To Conspiracy Theory They Got Buyer's Remorse On Maxx Crosby

Let's just say what the Baltimore Ravens will never admit: They look like villains around the NFL community – other teams, front offices, agents, some players – over the last 12 hours after they bailed on the Maxx Crosby trade and then filled the position left vacant with the addition of Trey Hendrickson. 

The Ravens spoke with Hendrickson's agent even before they decided to bail on the Crosby trade on Tuesday, shortly before the Raiders announced Baltimore's intention not to honor the trade. 

Even as Hendrickson's agent was negotiating with multiple teams, most prominently the Indianapolis Colts, it seemed the tone of talks changed because Hendrickson suddenly seemed to feel his negotiating hand just added a trump card.

Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson (91), left, and Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Sam Hubbard (94) celebrate a sack during a Week 16 NFL game against the Baltimore Ravens on Dec. 26, 2021, at Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati.

It Looks Like Buyer's Remorse

Well, the Ravens were the new card. And on Wednesday morning, Hendrickson agreed to terms on a four-year contract worth a reported $112 million. 

The deal will not be official until the start of free agency at 4 p.m. on Wednesday and pending a passed physical by Hendrickson.

(We have to say that because it's the Ravens, and they have a reputation now).

That reputation, like it or not, paints the Ravens as a cold and calculating club willing to go back on its word. 

That's because the whole Crosby trade scenario is starting to look less like an understandable decision to call off the trade based on an examination of Crosby's surgically repaired knee and more like the Ravens, led by the team's medical staff and general manager Eric DeCosta, deciding it's better to have Hendrickson and the two first-round picks they had agreed to send to Las Vegas for Crosby.

A classic case of buyer's remorse.

Baltimore Ravens QB Lamar Jackson is sacked by Raiders DE Maxx Crosby at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. (Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images)

Hendrickson Cheaper Than Crosby

And, did we mention, Hendrickson's new deal with Baltimore, which averages $28 million per season, will be cheaper than the Crosby deal the team would have inherited from the Raiders, which averaged $35.5 million per season?

Hendrickson will play the same role for Baltimore that Crosby was originally supposed to play, but he'll do it more cheaply and the club keeps its two first-round picks from the rescinded trade.

Multiple sources in NFL front offices and coaching staffs contacted by OutKick over the last few hours have shared a distaste for the Ravens. But also an acceptance that they seem to come out ahead.

The Colts certainly are disappointed. That's one word. 

Unhappy is another.

Indianapolis Colts Defensive Coordinator Lou Anarumo speaks during a press conference Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025 at the Colts practice facility, the Indiana Farm Bureau Football Center.

Colts Wanted Reunion With Hendrickson

A club source confirmed the Colts were talking with Hendrickson with the hopes of him joining defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo, who was also the Bengals defensive coordinator for Hendrickson in Cincinnati.

The Cowboys and other teams had also been keeping tabs on Hendrickson but doing so in hopes his asking price dropped. Hendrickson had hoped to land a free agency contract that averaged above $30 million per season, per a source, but that market softened the first day of free agency. 

And then the Ravens swooped in with a need and a contract that apparently beat all the other offers –  while also costing the team less than what they were paying for Crosby.

Done deal – again, pending a physical.

LAS VEGAS - Adam Butler #69 and Maxx Crosby #98 of the Las Vegas Raiders react after a tackle at Allegiant Stadium on November 5, 2023. (Photo by Ian Maule/Getty Images)

Ravens Wanted Crosby Until They Didn't

About that physical: The Ravens reviewed medical notes and MRIs and even spoke with Dr. Neal ElAttrache, who performed Crosby's January meniscus repair, before trading for the edge rusher. And they made the trade anyway.

But, once Crosby arrived in town with his family for his physical, the Ravens became uncomfortable with the player's long-term prognosis. Interestingly, they were fine with his short-term prognosis, as in for 2026.

So, DeCosta informed Crosby, his agent, and the Raiders that Crosby had failed their physical and the trade was off.

"I don't care how they paint it, I believe they realized they overpaid for Crosby in the trade and backed out," one NFL general manager told OutKick. "Physicals are a tool. You can use that tool as a reason to give for moving on from a player you no longer have in your plans, that's the truth.

"I think that's what happened here."

Neither the Raiders nor the NFL have recourse in this matter. The Ravens were well within their right to fail Crosby and call off the trade.

The Raiders, meanwhile, are weighing their options and have reportedly taken calls from other teams showing some interest in Crosby.