Packers may have to handle uncomfortable ripple effect after blockbuster NFL trade suddenly falls apart
Rashan Gary has been traded to the Cowboys.
The Dallas Cowboys were one of the teams interested in Maxx Crosby until the Baltimore Ravens decided to send two first-round picks to the Las Vegas Raiders for the star edge rusher. Looking for options, the Cowboys ended up sending a 2027 fourth-round pick to the Green Bay Packers for Rashan Gary.
Now, everything has changed — at least on the Crosby front. He failed his physical in Baltimore, and the Ravens suddenly backed out of the trade with Las Vegas. Could the Cowboys do the same with the Packers?
How it works
Teams can’t officially execute trades between the deadline and the new league year. That means the Raiders-Ravens deal wasn’t official, just like the Cowboys-Packers trade for Gary — it was all just agreed upon. Once Maxx Crosby failed his physical, the Ravens called it off.
And even though Rashan Gary himself didn’t fail his own physical, the short answer is yes, the Cowboys could theoretically back out of the trade to regain cap space and go after Crosby.
However, there are some ethical issues involved. One thing is for a team to back out of a deal because the player has a significant injury who could affect his long-term performance. Another one is to back out because a new market opportunity emerged. That wouldn’t be fair to the Packers.
A year ago, during the Micah Parsons’ contract negotiations, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones talked about his honesty to reach an agreement.
“I bought the Dallas Cowboys with a handshake,” Jones said. “It took about 30 seconds. I gave the number, shook hands, the details we worked out later. As a matter of fact, one of the details involved a lot of money and I had to flip a coin over that. But the fundamental, ‘I’m buying and you’re gonna sell it to me for that range,’ that’s done. And those are done with eye contact and handshake.”
The Packers-Cowboys trade for Rashan Gary is agreed upon — even the Cowboys official website reported it. It should be officially executed on Wednesday, especially because Dallas now doesn’t know the details about Maxx Crosby’s own physical situation.
It’s risky and it’s unfortunate for all parties, but the Packers should feel mostly safe about what’s coming next.
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