Maxx Crosby is not going to the Ravens

In one of the most stunning free agency stories in recent history, the Baltimore Ravens reneged on their trade agreement with the Raiders to acquire Crosby.

Vegas put out a pretty terse statement in response, suggesting they are quite pissed off with this development.

So how did it come to this?

Numerous reports are suggesting he failed a medical. Yet the Ravens agreed to this trade with the full knowledge that he had just had a meniscus repair. To agree to the trade, let it linger in the air and then back out at the last minute is incredible and many are speculating they just got cold feet.

Now the Raiders have to act in damage limitation mode and Crosby’s been put through an emotional rollercoaster. What do Vegas do? There’s been so many reports about a strained relationship with the higher ups, can they just go back to co-existing? Maybe. His connection to the franchise would suggest it’s at least possible.

What if it isn’t though? Now the Raiders face the prospect of having to negotiate from a horrendous position. They’ll have been making their plans for the last few days, including spending millions in free agency, assuming Crosby was gone — along with his salary — and they were getting the #14 pick and a 2027 first rounder.

This is awful for them. Unless someone is feeling generous, which I doubt given the multiple reports saying nobody else offered two first rounders, they will have to try and trade Crosby with no leverage.

My best guess, having had an hour to reflect, is they’ll probably try and get back together. That the damage to his stock will be so bad, it’ll make trading him away impossible from a PR perspective.

What if he insists on being dealt though? It seems unlikely, but still possible I suppose. Yet my prediction right now is he’ll not be traded at least in the near future. He’ll be welcomed back to the Raiders and they’ll check the lay of the land down the line.

If there was a chance to get him in Seattle, however, I would.

The Ravens are in a very different place to the Seahawks. They were giving up #14 and another first rounder, not #32. They were chasing a Championship, not basking in the glory of winning one a month ago.

They’ve had cold feet in the past, backing out of deals over failed medicals including as recently as 2018. They are a team that doesn’t typically make big veteran trades. There seems to be a high degree of risk averse going on here.

Already the NFL’s in-house reporters are pointing a finger at the Ravens. It’s quite something for this to be put out there:

The Seahawks can afford to be bold. It’s far easier to roll the dice with #32. Seattle’s fans will understand taking a shot from a position of strength, more so than Ravens fans and media.

You would have to do a medical. If the results suggest he might never play again, obviously you don’t the deal. If they suggest he’ll be available to play week one in September, I’d happily make that trade. ESPN are reporting the Raiders are open to “repackaging” a deal for Crosby.

Opportunism is the key to any NFL off-season. Seahawks fans have experienced that first hand on multiple occasions. This is as big an opportunity as there is.

If you can get Maxx Crosby, I’d be all-in.

Thoughts on Riq Woolen departing the Seahawks

Four years ago a player who was widely considered to be a second round talent lasted to the fifth round. It wasn’t obvious why. The Seahawks took Woolen, he had a great rookie year and everyone kind of forgot why he fell.

For the next three seasons, we were reminded regularly.

Woolen had all the talent in the world but he was unreliable. He gave up ugly plays mixed in with moments of quality too. You never knew what you were going to get though.

On top of this you had moments like his embarrassing groin-grab directed at the opposition sideline as the Seahawks secured a flukey win in Arizona to finish 9-8 and still miss the playoffs. Or, the awful flag that threatened to make him persona non grata in Seattle forever against the Rams in the NFC Championship.

He gave up a huge touchdown on the next play against LA — and gave up a downfield score in the Super Bowl too to keep the game alive.

They made him available for trade last year and nobody bit. Mike Macdonald clearly was unimpressed and was unable to mask that during his two years working with the former UTSA cornerback. You got the sense he was never even a consideration to be re-signed in Seattle. Macdonald wasn’t interested.

He’s now been forced to sign a prove-it deal with the Eagles thanks to a flat market. It’s no surprise. If nobody was willing to trade for him and everyone was willing to let him fall to round five in 2022, what has changed since then? He has confirmed to the entire NFL that he’s talented but massively flawed and unreliable. It’s hardly the basis for teams to invest millions in a player, where you worry how he’ll react to being newly minted if he’s hardly shown laser focus on the field on a fifth-round contract.

I’m not surprised the Eagles were the ones to roll the dice. They are one of the teams prepared to do so from time to time. They drafted Jalen Carter after all, when I’m not sure many (any?) other teams would’ve done so in round one.

I hope it works out for him. He had various boots up the backside in Seattle and it never really felt like the message registered. Will it now after this free agency experience? I’m not convinced. The Seahawks were never going to bring him back.