The Las Vegas Raiders are clearly at a crossroads with superstar Maxx Crosby. It would be a waste of time, and perhaps overwhelming, to thumb through every report that has surfaced on the matter, but it seems like no consensus has been reached about his future in Las Vegas.
Whether he wants out or the Raiders view him as a valuable trade piece is unclear. Perhaps he stays, and this whole charade was a big nothing. But this is unlike offseasons past, where Crosby and the team both quickly shut down the rumors. This is, undoubtedly, as close to a trade as it's ever been.
Derek Carr, the most polarizing player in franchise history, is a bit removed from the situation now. But that didn't stop him from voicing his opinion on whether or not the Silver and Black should deal Crosby, and whether or not he thinks they will trade Crosby.
Derek Carr is obviously not on board with Raiders trading Maxx Crosby
On his own Homegrown Podcast that he does with his brother, Carr, of course, brought up the drama surrounding Crosby on their most recent episode. And as expected, Carr warned the Raiders against trading Crosby.
"Let me explain why I don't think it's a great decision," Carr began. "There's a few positions in the NFL every team on our list right here is looking for. You got to have a quarterback. You got to have an offensive line. You got to have a defensive line, right? The Raiders have one of, if not the best overall defensive lineman playing the run, playing the pass, disruptive, motor, everything. Aura, leader, heart and soul of your team."
Carr continued by discussing the hole that trading Crosby would leave in the building.
"As soon as Max leaves your building, if you trade him, there's not only a hole in leadership," Carr explained. "There's not only a hole in your heart and your soul of your football team. There's a hole in your effort. There's a hole in your accountability. There's a hole in your defensive end position. And so this is my long winded version of why I think it's a bad choice. And I didn't think I'd have to explain that."
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Later in the week, Carr appeared on the 3 & OUT Podcast with John Middlekauff, and he was asked about the recent batch of Crosby trade rumors. Carr detailed the potential ripple effects of dealing Crosby once again.
"If you're on that team and you're a veteran or a free agent, you're like, 'You guys are getting rid of Maxx? Like, we all want to win.' Everyone needs a pass rusher, everyone needs someone with that kind of motor, everyone needs a leader. Well, guess what? You got three in one right there," Carr said. "He's the alpha in that building. He's going to run the show. If you ship him out, you just gotta understand that the heart and soul of your team is now gone, and so you gotta fill that void. And I don't think that there's just one guy you go out there and fill it with. I hope it doesn't happen, John. I really don't. Because what else do you want in a defensive end? He plays every snap, he'll play through anything, he plays harder than everybody next to him. He holds everyone to that standard."
While Carr's points are well-received, it is clear that the dynamic has shifted in Las Vegas. Crosby is no longer allowed to "run the show." He is not the "alpha in that building" anymore. This is the John Spytek and Klint Kubiak show. They are the alphas.
And it should be noted that, while Carr doesn't believe Crosby should be traded this offseason, he wouldn't rule out the possibility of it happening.
"But as we both know, it's a business, man. And I wouldn't be surprised if it did happen."