The Oakland Raiders made Maxx Crosby a fourth round pick this April, but will he crack the starting lineup as a rookie over the veterans?
Mad Maxx Crosby has been a topic of discussion among the Oakland Raiders social networks. From his freestyle last week, to the reports that he has been dominating in the OTAs, he is becoming a household name in the Silver and Black.
Last week, Pro Football Focus ran an article regarding training camp battles, and one they mentioned was Arden Key vs. Maxx Crosby. From the article, you’d get that Pro Football Focus is pretty high on Crosby:
"Crosby earned overall grades of 90.5 and 88.2 in 2017 and 2018. Not only was he productive in the passing game, but he also proved to be mightily productive against the run, where he earned a two-year run-defense grade of 91.2 and made first contact with the ball carrier on 13.7% of his run-defense snaps — the 10th-best mark among FBS edge defenders over the last two seasons."
Not only does PFF like Crosby a lot, but they believe he will start over Arden Key in the Raiders 4-3 defense:
"Verdict: Crosby’s all-around talent makes him perfectly suited for the early-down spot opposite Ferrell, while Key could be limited to a designated pass-rushing role going forward."
I want to give you my opinion on PFF’s article because I don’t 100% agree.
I love what Crosby brings to the table. When I watch his film, his hand usage is superb when comparing it to the average rookie. Compare Crosby’s hands to someone like Michigan’s Rashan Gary, and you’d see how much better Crosby is at using his hands.
Arden Key, on the other hand, is also very good with hands. They both attended pass rushing camps, and it’s evident in their film they have excellent hand usage. At the point of attack, both players can win there one vs. one block.
But to be realistic, both players are also limited because they are undersized for the Raiders 4-3 defense. True DEs in a 4-3 defense should weigh between 260-290 pounds.
Key weighs about 238 pounds, and Maxx Crosby weighs 255 pounds. Although Crosby is much closer to the ideal weight, we have to understand he is only a rookie. He will get much stronger, and he will put on more weight by Year 2.
So that goes back to the question, will Crosby start this year? And will he beat Key out for a starting position?
I’d say no and no. In fact, I don’t think either of these two will start. I do agree with PFF that Crosby will play on first downs or running plays more often then Key, who will primarily be a pass rusher. But at the end of the day, the Raiders have veterans like Alex Barrett, Josh Mauro, and Benson Mayowa.
The veterans that make this team will end up starting. Crosby and Key will take a back seat to those guys. If I had to predict, I think Crosby will play more in the second half of the season.
For more grades, advanced statistics and more at Pro Football Focus, subscribe
to PFF’s EDGE or ELITE subscriptions at ProFootballFocus.com.