Throughout the past half-decade, the Las Vegas Raiders have had one defender who’s been a constant force on their defense, and that’s Maxx Crosby. The former fourth-round draft pick immediately defied all odds once entering the league and has quickly developed into one of the premier pass rushers in the game.
Crosby did a lot of things well in 2024, as he usually does. Still, like the rest of the roster, there were plenty of frustrating moments the star had to go through this year. An injury ended up cutting his year short, which made his stats look a little worse than they might have if he had played the entire year. Let’s take a glance at his season as a whole and see what we can take from it.
Las Vegas Raiders Player Review: Maxx Crosby
Crosby’s Best Moments
One of Crosby’s best games came in just the second week of the season. After dropping their season opener, the Raiders were able to get a win in Week 2 with a surprising victory over the Baltimore Ravens. Crosby was a big contributor in that game, with two sacks, six combined tackles, and a whopping four tackles for a loss. He also had this big sack, forcing the Ravens to punt late in the game.
A couple of weeks later, Crosby had another impressive showing. This time it came in a loss when the Raiders were trounced by the Denver Broncos early in the year. In that game, Crosby not only recorded two sacks but also recorded two tackles for a loss.
Even when Crosby isn’t showing up on the stat sheet, he’s still making an impact. Take a look at this play. Even though Crosby never gets to the quarterback, his mere presence occupies the minds of three linemen, allowing the Raiders to get home on a stunt up the middle.
Maxx Crosby’s 2024 Season: A Summary
Despite playing in just 12 games, Crosby did make a decent impact. He finished the year with 7.5 sacks, five pass deflections, 45 combined tackles, 17 tackles for a loss, and 20 QB hits. Crosby ended up making the Pro Bowl for the fourth year in a row and the fourth time in his career.
Crosby’s numbers dipped, but this is also the first time in his career in which he didn’t play every game in a season. His injuries set his year back, and he wasn’t the only defensive line member sidelined. Malcolm Koonce was injured before Week 1, and Christian Wilkins was injured just five games into the season. Undoubtedly, the absence of those two players and the ongoing turnover elsewhere on the field made his job more challenging.
How Much Longer Will Maxx Crosby Be In Vegas?
Looking towards the future, things can get pretty complicated. Crosby currently has two years left on his contract. There’s been a ton of rumors, with most of them being speculation, regarding Crosby’s remaining time in Las Vegas.
It doesn’t seem like there’s any doubt that Crosby wants to play for the Raiders. However, the two sides could be nearing a situation similar to that of Myles Garrett and the Cleveland Browns. Garrett has repeatedly stated that he enjoys being in Cleveland but recently requested a trade, citing the fact that he wants to be on a contending team. Nothing says that’s surely in the forecast regarding the Raiders and Crosby, but there’s a possibility things could head in that direction if Las Vegas doesn’t start to figure everything out soon.
So, the Raiders are in a familiar position. They’ve got a premier talent in Crosby but have not found a way to win with him. Once again, in 2025, Vegas will hope he helps pull them into playoff contention. If that doesn’t happen, things could start to get murky.
