About halfway through training camp, Kirk Cousins and Maxx Crosby got into a bit of a scuffle during a team period at practice. Although the exact details of what caused it remained unclear, those on hand believed that Crosby made too much contact with the veteran quarterback, given the setting.
Klint Kubiak and the Raiders didn't let this story get blown out of proportion, though. It was quickly nipped in the bud, as Kubiak suspended both players for one practice, and that was the last that anyone heard of it. There's no bad blood, and the team was no worse for the antics.
But during Tuesday's joint practice with the Houston Texans, Cousins reportedly got upset at the end of the team period once again, this time with his opponents. And when describing his frustration, the 38-year-old quarterback alluded back to his dustup with Crosby, defending his side of the story.
Kirk Cousins explains dustup with Maxx Crosby after Raiders-Texans joint practice
Following Tuesday's session with the Texans, Cousins was asked about why he was visibly upset toward the end of practice. Cousins explained simply that the Houston defense had hit his arm, just as Crosby had earlier in camp.
"Well, my elbow got hit," Cousins explained. "And I joke with Maxx [Crosby], I say, 'You can touch me anywhere you want. Just don't touch my arm.' ... If anything, hitting me in the hips or the ribs is actually good because it simulates what I need to feel. I said the elbow and the shoulders [are] where I could sprain something pretty easily. So, if you could just help me."
Without passing too much judgment on Crosby, it does seem like a fairly simple request: Not to make any contact with the guy in a non-contact jersey. Run-ins happen, but hitting a fragile part of the body like an arm or the head just doesn't feel above board. And yet the Texans did it, too.
Cousins made it clear, though, that he isn't against the contact on the body, just the extremities. He further defended himself by bringing up the fact that he has had seasons ruined because of extreme contact to his limbs.
"I got some scars from some hits in real games where helmets go into armpits and things, and it ruins your season. So, I was just asking him to just stay off the arm. And [I] had to remind the Texans as well. You can hit me anywhere you want, or I might as well just take the red jersey off. Because you're playing with sometimes an understood rule that if it's not understood, then what are we doing?"
It is understandable why Cousins would be so upset with Crosby for doing so, and why he would have a bone to pick about it. Starting a minor scuffle doesn't even seem like an overreaction here. It is good to know, though, that Cousins could keep his cool in a more game-like setting with a real foe.
All is well that ends well, but if Cousins got hurt in a setting like this, it would be a tough pill to swallow. Thankfully, Raider Nation now knows fully what occurred between Crosby and Cousins that day. Unfortunately, it took Houston doing the same thing to find out.
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