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Chances of a Maxx Crosby trade to the Dallas Cowboys have dropped but, they’re ‘not over’ yet.

As the details have trickled out in recent days, revealing just how far the Dallas Cowboys were prepared to go to bring in star pass rusher Maxx Crosby of the Raiders in a trade just before the opening of NFL free agency this month, there has been a real sense that Crosby was very nearly on his way back to the Dallas area, where he’d grown up and gone to high school. The Cowboys were firm on giving the Raiders a first-round pick, as the have No. 12 and No. 20 in this year’s draft.

The hang-up was the next bit of compensation. The Cowboys wanted to give the Raiders some combination of Osa Odighizuwa and a future Day 2 pick. They were not going to sweeten the offer to two first-rounders, and when Baltimore did make that offer, the Raiders pulled the trigger.

We know what happened from there–the Ravens pulled out of the deal citing Crosby’s balky knee, the Raiders took Crosby back. Along the way, the Cowboys stepped aside and nixed further negotiations on a trade. That appeared to close the book on Maxx Crosby in a Cowboys uniform.

‘Let’s Revisit’ Maxx Crosby Trade

But not so fast, says Cowboys veteran beat writer Clarence Hill, who was speaking with Jeff Cavanaugh on the “DLLS Cowboys” podcast on Tuesday. As Hill sees it, the loss to the Ravens in the Crosby trade sweepstakes isn’t a permanent defeat. If the Raiders are a middling team next season, they probably will again look to move Crosby, who turns 29 in August.

Said Hill: “Let’s revisit at the trade deadline. This is—this is not over. Let’s revisit at the trade deadline. Some of the things coming out of Baltimore, what they’re saying in Baltimore, ‘We’re worried about degenerative.’ He’ll play this year but what about two or three years down the line?”

Maxx Crosby Thrived Even on Bad Knee

Crosby had surgery–to fix the meniscus in his knee–three months ago, so it is not a surprise that the Ravens found fault with his medical records. Anyone would. It was a surprise that Baltimore took the drastic step of rescinding the deal based on medical red flags that were mostly expected, anyway.

If Crosby was playing on a bad knee in 2025, it should be noted, he still had a career-high with 28 tackles for losses, had 10 sacks in 15 games and made his fifth straight Pro Bowl.

Cowboys Need to Win Now

That’s what stands out most prominently for Hill. Maybe Crosby is injury-prone and will prove to be a bad investment if a team were to trade for him and extend him on a new contract. But that bad investment is not going to show itself in the first year or two after a Crosby trade.

By then, Crosby could have been the difference-maker in getting the Ravens or Cowboys  to a Super Bowl trophy.

“Baltimore, to me, it’s like the Cowboys,” Hill said. “You ain’t won squat. Your biggest issue is winning in the playoffs. It’s about winning now, I am not worried about 2027 and 2028. If I get to the Super Bowl this year, he don’t have to play in ‘27 and ‘28. We’re gonna be fine. Because we got our Super Bowl. Lamar Jackson and Baltimore are in the same position as Dak and the Cowboys—it’s time to win.”

Sean Deveney is a veteran sports reporter covering the NBA, NFL and MLB for Heavy.com. He has written for Heavy since 2019 and has more than two decades of experience covering the NBA, including 17 years as the lead NBA reporter for the Sporting News. Deveney is the author of 7 nonfiction books, including “Fun City,” “Before Wrigley became Wrigley,” and “Facing Michael Jordan.” More about Sean Deveney