The NFL free agency period always offers jaw-dropping moments, but in 2026, one took the cake. That moment was when the Baltimore Ravens traded to get Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby on their squad and then pulled out of their deal, only to sign Trey Hendrickson not long after.
It was a messy situation, and it brought plenty of drama to the 2026 free agency period. But, the Ravens are under a new head coach, Jesse Minter, and perhaps it’s all part of the growing pains.
Now, however, the Ravens are getting slammed for that sticky situation by an analyst who thinks they should have stuck with Crosby.
In a Wednesday feature, Zachary Pereles of CBS Sports gives the team a C+ for the edge drama and additional factors.
“I was very much a fan of the Maxx Crosby trade for Baltimore, which desperately needed a game-changing star on the defensive front. Then the trade shockingly fell through due to medical issues,” he states in the piece. “Baltimore quickly pivoted, though, by signing Trey Hendrickson to a four-year, $112 deal.”
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It’s not just the Crosby situation that makes him question the Ravens, though. In the piece, he says the team’s “offseason is off to an abjectly disastrous start.”
“The Ravens saw their roster exposed for several holes in 2025,” he says. “More holes are popping up — and quickly — early in free agency, but there’s still time to get things back on track.”
But, he does give them props for restructuring quarterback Lamar Jackson’s contract to free up some space.
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In a different feature for Yahoo Sports, Frank Schwab grades the changes each team has made in free agency, and he gives the Eagles a B-.
“We’d normally applaud the Ravens for signing Hendrickson, the top free agent on the board this offseason, but the controversy will linger,” he says. But, he adds that “the Hendrickson signing helped stop the bleeding for the Ravens’ offseason.”
On the positive side, Schwab likes that the Baltimore Ravens get to keep the two first-round picks that they were going to send to the Ravens for Crosby. It’s a move that will help them build for the future.
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