Maxx Crosby Has Telling Reaction to Ben Johnson Spurning Raiders

The Las Vegas Raiders fan base didn’t think Ben Johnson would even consider the team’s head coaching job but were eventually convinced that he’d be hired. Many reports indicated that the Raiders were the favorite to land Johnson.

That’s why when the news broke that he was taking the Chicago Bears head coaching job, many were caught off guard. It’s unclear exactly how serious Johnson was about his Raiders interest and where things could’ve gone wrong but many were duped into the idea he’d be heading into Las Vegas.

Even Raiders star defensive end Maxx Crosby was surprised by the news.

“I’m not gonna lie, I was surprised,” Crosby said on the Jan. 21 episode of “The Rush.” “It caught me off guard. It seemed like everything was trending in that direction. At the end of the day, like I said, I’m focused on where my feet are at, getting healthy, controlling what I can control and we’ll see what all happens in general. It was definitely a little curveball. I wasn’t expecting that.”

It’s possible that Johnson was strongly considering the Raiders job until the lack of a quarterback scared him away. Regardless, Crosby and the Raiders will have to go back to the drawing board.

Should Raiders Be Worried About Crosby?

Crosby has said time and time again that he wants to spend his whole career with the Raiders. However, it’s starting to look like a real possibility that he might want to move on. He wanted Antonio Pierce as head coach but that was a disaster and the team moved on.

He’s about to have his fourth full-time head coach since joining the franchise. Perhaps landing an exciting name like Johnson would’ve calmed his concerns but now the Raiders are going to end up with their second choice at best.

Crosby has been much more open about discussing the idea of playing for another team and he’s expressed concern with the fact that his contract doesn’t have any guaranteed money left. Now that the Raiders couldn’t land the coach they wanted, it’s easy to see him getting frustrated with the franchise. Depending on who the Raiders end up hiring at head coach, it could be time to consider a Crosby trade, especially if he’s unhappy with the team.

Can Pete Carroll Save the Raiders?

Now that Johnson is off the board, former Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll is expected to be the favorite. Though he’s 73, he would inject some life into a franchise that has been floundering for years.

He doesn’t have the long-term upside that Johnson does but he’s a proven winner who has a Super Bowl championship as a head coach. This is a very weak pool of coaching candidates and in hindsight, the Raiders may have been better off keeping Pierce for another year and perhaps launching a head coaching search next year.

However, it’s too little too late and Carroll might be the best the Raiders can do. He may only be able to give the team a few years but he’d easily be the most accomplished head coach the team has hired in a very long time.