The Las Vegas Raiders are trading five-time Pro Bowl defensive end Maxx Crosby to the Baltimore Ravens, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Friday.
The cost for the Ravens will be first-round draft picks in 2026 and 2027. The trade cannot be processed until next week.
Raiders general manager John Spytek told reporters at the NFL combine that he anticipated Crosby being on the roster next season. He said so two weeks after new head coach Klint Kubiak made it clear that he wanted Crosby, 28, to be part of Vegas’ success going forward, calling that a “no-brainer.”
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But Crosby trade rumors have come in waves, the latest arriving after the Raiders shut him down for their final two games last season.
The Athletic’s Dianna Russini reported on Jan. 3 that the Raiders’ decision to place Crosby on injured reserve strained the relationship between him and the team. While Crosby’s knee injury ultimately required surgery, he apparently felt confident he could play through the issue.
After the Raiders put him on IR, he went on to post a video of him playing basketball and photos of him on a trampoline. Meanwhile, the Raiders tumbled toward the No. 1 pick in this year’s NFL Draft, a “race” that Crosby notably didn’t care for as a defensive stalwart starring for a franchise that has played in just two playoff games since making the Super Bowl during the 2002 season.
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With all sorts of noise surrounding Crosby, particularly during Super Bowl week, he told the Let’s Go! podcast on Feb. 9 that he had been tuning it out and focusing on returning to full strength.
“People are gonna have rumors,” Crosby said at the time. “I just looked at my phone, I’ve been working all morning. Everyone’s hitting me up, ‘Did you say this?’ I can’t control that. You earn that as a player. If I wasn’t doing the right things, and if I wasn’t the person and player I was, you know, people wouldn’t be talking about all of the nonsense. But that’s what comes with it.
“If you have drama, if you have a losing season, they just try to throw gasoline on the fire and make things a certain way. And, for me, I know what I’m about, I know what I represent. I really don’t care what everybody has to say.”
He later added: “I know my truth.”
Crosby has maintained that he wants to win and focus solely on football.
Last year, the Raiders signed Crosby to a three-year extension reportedly worth $106.5 million. Back then, that deal made him the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history.
He no longer holds that title; however, he still commands immense value at a premium position.
While still based in Oakland, the Raiders selected Crosby out of Eastern Michigan in the fourth round of the 2019 draft. He’s played for them the past seven seasons, piling up at least 10 sacks four times.
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He’ll get a change of scenery in 2026 and perhaps a return to the postseason, too.
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