The Oakland Raiders went back to their 2018 draft philosophy by taking one of the best athletes on the defensive line in Eastern Michigan’s Maxx Crosby.
After surprising most of the draft community by taking Clelin Ferrell at #4 overall, the Oakland Raiders dipped back into the defensive line by selecting Maxx Crosby at the top of the 4th round.
One of the real winners of the combine back in early March, Crosby is a 2-time All-MAC First Team selection and finished his college career with 20 sacks and 40 tackles for loss. He tested like an elite athlete, and I do mean elite which I’m sure intrigued a multitude of teams. Looking at his spider chart on mockdraftable.com, Crosby tested in the 90th percentile or above in every single drill, so the upside for him seems to be great.
Why the pick makes sense.
Just picking Clelin Ferrell wasn’t going to be enough to solve Oakland’s pass rush issues so choosing Crosby is not wrong at all. The weird thing about this is that after picking Ferrell over Josh Allen in the first round in part due to scheme fit, it’s interesting that they would go after an undersized speed rusher like Crosby.
PFF graded Crosby as the second best in run-defense among edge rusher the past two season, but lower competition has a lot to do with that. One look at Crosby, and it is evident that he does not have a lot of strength and needs to develop his body big time. Much like Arden Key last season, although Crosby appears to be a far superior athlete.
How he helps the team
For a team that plays a lot of 2-deep coverage, you need guys that can get to the quarterback in a hurry and Crosby has the upside to be that guy. His athletic traits are something you just don’t see that often so if the Raiders can get him developed in the weight room, they could have discovered a hidden gem. Not sure he will be able to function in base sets, but the NFL is a nickel and sub-package league so I think he can find himself on the field quite a bit in 2019.