PHOENIX
One of the biggest dramatics of not only this NFL offseason, but of the drama of all NFL offseasons, was the debacle around the Baltimore Ravens canceling the trade for five-time Pro Bowl defensive end Maxx Crosby after a failed physical earlier this month. Days after agreeing to terms with the Las Vegas Raiders, the Ravens sent Crosby back to Sin City without the deal ever going through.
It was especially notable for the Dallas Cowboys, as they were deep in discussions with the Raiders about a potential deal before the Ravens offered two first-round picks to end the sweepstakes. Multiple team sources have said that the Cowboys had varying combinations of the No. 12 overall pick, the No. 20 overall pick, a 2027 second-round pick and defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa (who has since been traded to the San Francisco 49ers) on the table. The caveat, however, was that the Cowboys were never going to part with both first-round picks.
As the days passed and it appeared as though Crosby would be headed to the Ravens, the Cowboys pivoted by trading for Packers outside linebacker Rashan Gary. The available cap space that they theoretically had built out in the event of a Crosby addition was quickly used up. By the time the Crosby trade was annulled, that money had been dished out elsewhere.
The series of events raised questions about the Ravens’ integrity in the situation and if there needs to be any league oversight for similar outcomes with physicals.
“We were all surprised when [the Crosby nixed trade] happened,” Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer said on Monday. “[The league] will look at that and figure out what happens, but at the end of the day it’s very competitive and moves fast, especially when you’re talking about great players, which there’s a lot of great players. They address that and figure it out. I’m not overly concerned about it.”
“It’s pretty simple for me, there’s no hidden item there,” owner Jerry Jones said. “You have to pass a physical. We’ve never completed an agreement until the player passes a physical. That implies your doctors and trainers and everyone involved get to take a look at it. That goes with the territory. We would’ve basically looked at the same conditions with a physical. And as you know, we were in on making an offer for him. So, he would’ve come to Dallas [and] well all just guess what would’ve happened.”
With Crosby back in Vegas, the question exists about if the Raiders could re-visit the trade market for their star pass rusher in the summer. If that were to happen, the Cowboys would have to look at it in a different lens than they do now.
“I don’t anticipate, standing here right now, revisiting that situation,” Jones said. “I don’t anticipate it. Is it possible? Yes.”
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Nick Harris is the Dallas Cowboys beat reporter for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. He has experience working on the beat for DallasCowboys.com and previous work experience at Yahoo Sports/Rivals and 247Sports.