Eric DeCosta Makes First Comments After Ravens' Maxx Crosby Trade Fiasco

Not many people thought that Baltimore Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta would face the music as he did, but to his credit, he did talk to the media.

Everyone wanted to chat with him after the Ravens decided to back out of their trade with the Las Vegas Raiders that would have involved five-time Pro Bowl edge rusher Maxx Crosby. Baltimore was set on sending two first-round picks to the Raiders to acquire Crosby, but after a failed physical, the Ravens decided not to move forward.

It has left many questioning the Ravens' decision and whether it's a bad look for the organization to back out like that. That's why DeCosta was forced into the spotlight to explain the decision to move on from completing the trade.

Eric DeCosta explains the Ravens backing out of Maxx Crosby trade

DeCosta explained in his press conference that the team was looking at potentially adding Crosby with Trey Hendrickson, who they eventually ended up signing to a four-year, $112 million contract hours after the Crosby trade fell through. The Ravens general manager was not happy with the decision that had to be made.

Baltimore Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

"Nobody is more upset by this than me," DeCosta said via The Athletic's Jeff Zrebiec. "I'm gutted by it"

DeCosta went on to share his admiration of Raiders general manager John Spytek. More was added by DeCosta about his feeling on Spytek and sharing the bad news to Crosby.

"I got a lot of respect for Mark Davis, John Spytek, and the Raiders. It's devastating for me to have that conversation. It's also very, very hard for the player."

It's not a great look for the Ravens to back out of a deal, especially when, unfortunately, there is a bit of a history with the franchise in doing that. Three times, the Ravens have decided after a failed physical not to sign a player, including safety Brock Marion in 1997, wide receiver Ryan Grant in 2018, and defensive end Michael Brockers in 2020.

There's going to be continuous chatter about the situation, as it is not going to go away for the Ravens. This might actually be only the beginning, as it is the biggest trade in NFL history that didn't happen because a team pulled out at the last second. Only time will tell whether the Ravens are going to be on the right side of history or the wrong one.

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