Add The California Post on Google Maxx Crosby is all in on the Las Vegas Raiders. Adam Schefter believes that could change drastically depending on the teams performance
The five-time Pro Bowl pass rusher returned to Las Vegas after an offseason trade to the Baltimore Ravens collapsed over concerns about his surgically repaired knee. Crosby has since publicly recommitted to the Raiders and expressed his desire to remain with the franchise.
Schefter does not expect that position to change before the season.
“I think he’s there, and they’re going to play with him and use him,” Schefter said on his podcast. “He’s the face of the franchise, one of the faces of the franchise, and beloved down in Vegas, as he should be.”
“What if the Raiders aren’t winning regularly?” Schefter said. “What if the Raiders are 1-5, 2-6, and we’re coming up to the trade deadline in the first week in November and there’s a team out there that can use a pass rusher?”
Schefter believes that scenario could reopen trade discussions, particularly if Crosby proves his knee is healthy and returns to his customary level.
“I think that’s when the trade potentially could come back into play,” Schefter said. “That’s when it might be time to start paying attention.”
Crosby would immediately become one of the deadline’s most valuable available players—and his recent production explains why.
Among edge rushers over the past four seasons, Crosby ranks sixth in total pressures with 271 and sixth in sacks with 44.5. He accumulated those numbers across 2,176 pass-rushing snaps, the most among the players ranked in the top 10 during that span.
His value also extends beyond rushing the passer. Crosby recorded 297 tackles from 2022 through 2025, the most among that same group of elite edge defenders, while his 90 tackles for loss ranked second. Even during a relative decline in pressure production last season, he finished with 10 sacks, 73 tackles and 28 tackles for loss.
That combination of volume, durability and all-around disruption separates Crosby from the specialized pass rushers who appear on the trade market more frequently.
His medical evaluation ended Baltimore’s proposed acquisition, which would have sent two first-round picks to Las Vegas. A productive start to 2026 could ease those concerns and restore much of his trade value.
Chicago needs another dependable edge rusher opposite Montez Sweat after finishing among the NFL’s least productive teams in sacks last season. Dallas has continued searching for a defensive difference-maker, while the 49ers need pass-rush help as Nick Bosa and Mykel Williams return from season-ending knee injuries.
The cost would remain enormous. Crosby is scheduled to collect approximately $30 million this season, and the Raiders have already established that they value him as a multiple-first-round-pick asset. Any contender would be sacrificing premium draft capital while accepting a significant contract and some medical risk.
That price becomes easier to justify in November, when a team knows whether Crosby is healthy and whether one elite pass rusher could alter its championship chances.
Las Vegas would face the opposite calculation. Keeping its emotional leader would preserve credibility during another rebuilding season. Trading him could accelerate that rebuild with valuable draft picks if the standings have already removed realistic playoff hopes.
Crosby wants to be a Raider today, and Schefter has heard nothing suggesting a summer trade is coming. A poor start, however, could turn that commitment into another deadline negotiation.
For now, Crosby is the face of the Raiders. By November, he could be the missing piece every contender wants.
