The Baltimore Ravens need to address their pass rush in the 2026 offseason and one surefire way to do it would be trading for one of the best pass rushers in the game. That's precisely what Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report had them doing, as he linked the Ravens to a trade for Raiders pass-rushing phenom Maxx Crosby.
The proposed trade is the Raiders sending Crosby to Baltimore in exchange for a 2026 first-round pick, a 2027 first-round pick, and wide receiver Rashod Bateman. Ravens fans would sign up for this deal yesterday.
"The Ravens have typically been good enough offensively when Lamar Jackson has been healthy. However, their 25th-ranked defense hasn't been playoff-caliber. Getting to opposing quarterbacks has been a particularly big problem, too.
Baltimore has logged just 28 sacks as a team, and no Ravens defender has recorded more than four.
Adding Crosby to the mix would help the Ravens return to being a legitimate threat in the AFC. As part of the deal, Baltimore could send wide receiver Rashod Bateman to Las Vegas."
Proposed Bleacher Report trade finally nets Ravens the superstar fans have long wanted
As Knox noted in his write-up, the Ravens pass-rush has not been where it needs to be for this team to truly succeed. That has to change in 2026. Adding Crosby would go a long way toward doing that, as he had 10 sacks in 15 games, which is far more than any player on their roster amassed.
Surrendering two first-round picks would be a hefty price to pay but it'd be worth it if Crosby continued to feast on quarterbacks the way he has through the first seven years of his NFL career. Losing Bateman wouldn't be a big loss since he's been a bit of a disappointment since Baltimore took him in the first round in 2021. He had nine touchdowns in 2024 but has mostly been lackluster in his five-year stint with the Ravens.
If the Ravens are serious about getting to the Super Bowl while Lamar Jackson is still in his prime, these are the kinds of deals they need to make. Crosby would turn this defense from mediocre into mesmerizing and that's why fans are keeping their fingers crossed that this trade doesn't end up just as a Bleacher Report proposal.