National Football League

Did Cardinals and Ravens both win 'Hollywood' Brown trade?

Published Apr. 29, 2022 5:59 p.m. ET

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Lamar Jackson isn't a fan of the move … 

… but Colin Cowherd certainly is.

"Last night, Lamar Jackson got a little worked up because the Baltimore Ravens traded ‘Hollywood’ Brown. … He's an erratic player who didn't play well at the end of the year and he wanted to be traded."

The latest news out of Baltimore is that Marquise ‘Hollywood’ Brown requested a trade apparently due to the Ravens' tendency to run the ball more than pass it. Baltimore obliged, sending the 24-year-old speedster to the Arizona Cardinals in exchange for the 23rd overall pick, which the Ravens then traded to Buffalo. 

"It was just the situations I was put in a lot of times," Brown said on the "I Am Athlete" podcast. "As a receiver, even in college, I didn't catch as many balls. … And I just felt times throughout my career [in Baltimore], I wasn't put in the best situations. It was just something that I was dealing with."

Despite Jackson's apparent frustrations, he was made aware of the possibility that Brown could be on his way out, according to the receiver.

On Friday, Cowherd looked at the swap from the perspective of both teams, first focusing on Baltimore and giving the organization credit for its draft prowess in recent years.

"[The Ravens] got Lamar at the end of the first round, so they're pretty good at the draft thing."

Lamar Jackson loses Marquise 'Hollywood' Brown to the Cardinals

Colin Cowherd trusts the Baltimore Ravens front office, which traded Marquise 'Hollywood' Brown to the Arizona Cardinals for a first round pick.

In Thursday's first round, at No. 14, Baltimore grabbed Notre Dame free safety Kyle Hamilton. At No. 25, the Ravens picked Iowa center Tyler Linderbaum. 

FOX Sports NFL Draft analyst Rob Rang gave Baltimore draft grades of B+ and A for Hamilton and Linderbaum, respectively.

"The Ravens hit a homerun in the first round," Cowherd said. " … and it's a deep wide receiver draft." 

Cowherd then took a look at what the trade meant for Arizona, a team that plays in arguably one of the toughest divisions in football, the NFC West.

"The Arizona Cardinals, in a division with the Super Bowl champs and Kyle Shanahan, said, ‘Listen, we’ve gotta get fast, we've gotta get elusive. We're gonna be in shootouts, we have an offensive coach and a young star quarterback in Kyler Murray. Let's get him more help.'

"What they're basically saying is, ‘If we’re gonna win, we're gonna win with offense.' That's the side of the ball Arizona has chosen."

Brown will certainly bring offense with him to the desert, after posting career highs in receptions (91) and receiving yards (1,008) last season. 

Brown's numbers are especially impressive when you consider the Ravens were one of four teams to rush the ball over 500 times last season (517), finishing third in the NFL in total rushing yards (2,479) and rushing yards per game (145.8).

"Hollywood" joins a receiving corps in Arizona that includes five-time Pro Bowler DeAndre Hopkins, veteran star A.J. Green and star tight end Zach Ertz.

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