The Baltimore Ravens needed to make a move at edge rusher this offseason. Unfortunately, both of their options ended up being elite players with massive injury issues hanging over their heads.
First, the Ravens backed out of a trade for NFL All-Pro edge rusher Maxx Crosby over concerns about his surgically repaired knee — what’s become 1 of the most infamous non-transactions in NFL history.
After the Crosby deal fell apart, the Ravens moved quickly to sign NFL All-Pro edge rusher Trey Hendrickson to a 4-year, $112 million contract — despite only playing 7 games in 2025 for the Cincinnati Bengals after undergoing season-ending hip/pelvis surgery. Hendrickson will also turn 32 years old this season.
Bleacher Report’s Gary Davenport singled out Hendrickson’s injury issues flaring up again as the “worst case scenario” for the Ravens in 2026.
“Hendrickson is also well past 30 and is coming off one of the worst seasons of his career, so it’s not certain he will instantly become a Pro Bowl edge-rusher again,” Davenport wrote. “Two years ago, the Ravens logged 54 sacks (second-most in the NFL) and the pass defense ranked, um, 31st in the league. There’s no shortage of big names on the back end in Baltimore, but if the Ravens are abysmal against the pass again, the team is going to be in major trouble.”
Hendrickson, 6-foot-4 and 265 pounds, had consecutive seasons with 17.5 sacks in 2023 and 2024, leading the NFL in sacks in 2024, when he earned NFL All-Pro honors. He’s also a 4-time Pro Bowler.
Trey Hendrickson Battled With Bengals Front Office
Hendrickson is coming off a career-worst year in 2025 in which he missed 10 games due to injuries and only had 4.0 sacks after a nasty, prolonged contract battle with the Cincinnati Bengals that spanned the 2 previous offseasons.
He spent the last 2 years battling with the Bengals for a long-term extension and alternately asking to be traded. He finally signed a 1-year, $29 million contract on August 25 but was largely sidelined as the Bengals went 6-11 and missed the playoffs for a third consecutive season.
With such a down year, Hendrickson’s asking price of $30 million had gone down significantly — until the Crosby deal fell through.
Fox Sports NFL reporter Greg Auman had Hendrickson at No. 3 on his list of the Top 100 NFL free agents in the 2026 free agent cycle. ESPN had him ranked as the No. 1 available free agent.
Ravens Shocked NFL By Backing Out of Crosby Trade
In one of the more shocking and dramatic offseason twists in NFL history, the Ravens backed out of a trade with the Raiders for Crosby on Tuesday night after agreeing to send their 2026 and 2027 1st round picks to the Raiders in exchange for Crosby on Friday night.
“The Baltimore Ravens have backed out of our trade agreement for Maxx Crosby,” the Raiders said in a prepared statement. “We will have no further comment at this time.”
The deal was called off after Crosby, who underwent meniscus surgery on his knee in December, reportedly failed a physical.
Crosby had been in Baltimore the last few days, undergoing physical exams, which are part of finalizing any trade.
The NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo confirmed it was a medical issue that held up the trade.
“Maxx Crosby had surgery to repair his meniscus right around the end of the season, and meniscus recoveries take 3-4 months,” NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport said on March 10. “It appears the Ravens are just not comfortable with what they found during the medical exams for Maxx Crosby, so now the trade is off.”
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