The New England Patriots will not land defensive end Maxx Crosby on the trade market. But they will still compete against him in the AFC next season.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Friday night the Baltimore Ravens agreed to send two first-round picks to the Las Vegas Raiders for Crosby.
The Ravens are sending their 2026 and 2027 first-round picks to the Raiders for Crosby. The trade will become official at 4 pm ET Wednesday when the new league year officially begins.
The trade cannot be processed until next week, but it is in place. And Crosby is expected to be a Raven with two 1s back to Vegas.
The Friday night news will come as disappointment for the Patriots and their fans. New England was one of the more popular rumored destinations for the All-Pro defensive end over the past few weeks.
The Patriots could use an upgrade at edge rusher entering 2026. The team will now have to find that potential upgrade elsewhere.
Meanwhile, Crosby will stay in the AFC. The Patriots will not have Crosby and the Ravens on their regular season schedule during 2026. But with a healthy Lamar Jackson, the Ravens could be a threat at the top of the AFC standings and in the postseason.
Ravens Acquire DE Maxx Crosby From the Raiders: Report
Two first-round picks is a hefty price to pay. But with Crosby, the Ravens are getting one of the top edge rushers in the league over the past several seasons.
Since 2021, Crosby has made the Pro Bowl five consecutive seasons. He’s also made second-team All-Pro twice, most recently in 2023.
During that campaign, he posted a career-best 14.5 sacks.
Crosby is a potent defender against the run and the pass. He’s averaged nearly 10 sacks per season over his entire career. He has also registered 1.2 tackles for loss per game at the NFL level.
Crosby led the league in tackles for loss during 2022 and 2023.
Last season, he recorded 10 sacks with 73 combined tackles, including a career-best 28 tackles for loss. He also had 20 quarterback hits, six pass defenses, two forced fumbles and his first career interception.
The Ravens badly needed to address their pass rush this offseason. Former third-round defensive tackle Travis Jones led Baltimore with only five sacks during 2025.
How Crosby Could Have Fit With Patriots
New England’s defense wasn’t as bad as Baltimore’s at getting to the quarterback in 2025. But the Patriots were reportedly exploring a deal for Crosby to improve in that area.
Veteran Harold Landry led New England with 8.5 sacks last season. Landry has been a reliable edge rusher in recent years, but he will turn 30 in June. Landry also missed the entire 2022 campaign with a knee injury.
New England’s No. 2 edge rusher, K’Lavon Chaisson, is an unrestricted free agent.
In the perfect world, the Patriots would land not only a player to replace Chaisson but an edge rusher even superiorto Landry. That move Landry into the No. 2 role and take the New England pass rush to another level.
If the Patriots are still going to do that, they may have to target veteran Trey Hendrickson in free agency. Hendrickson is older than Crosby and is coming off a season where he missed more than half the year because of injury.
Hendrickson might also be the most expensive free agent on the market next week.
The good news, though, is Hendrickson won’t cost two first-round picks to acquire.
It will be interesting to see if Hendrickson becomes New England’s next target, or if the team pursues other edge rushers in the first week of free agency.
The Patriots have also reportedly been pursuing a trade for receiver A.J. Brown. With Crosby off the table, maybe New England will push harder to acquire Brown from the Philadelphia Eagles.
Patriots Miss out on Maxx Crosby, Who Lands With AFC Foe in Blockbuster Deal: Report