The trade that sent receiver Marquis “Hollywood” Brown from the Ravens to the Cardinals came out of the blue. In Baltimore, it was a long time coming.
Via Jamison Hensley of ESPN.com, G.M. Eric DeCosta told reporters after the conclusion of round one that Brown asked to be traded at the end of the 2021 season.
DeCosta described it as a “complicated topic.”
“It’s something I anguished over for a long time,” DeCosta added.
In November 2020, Brown complained about his role with the Ravens. In an offense premised on the run, receivers who want to catch passes may feel a little marginalized and underutilized.
Brown nevertheless had his first and only 1,000-yard season in 2021, catching 91 passes in 16 games. He was targeted 146 times.
In Arizona, that surely will change — in a good way. We’ll address that in a separate post.