Maxx Crosby has practically been the lifeblood of the Las Vegas Raiders' defense since his arrival. Now, with his longtime position coach, Rob Leonard, serving as the defensive coordinator, Raider Nation is expecting Crosby to take things to even higher heights.
But coming off the most serious injury of his career, head coach Klint Kubiak opted to keep Maxx Crosby on the sidelines for the preseason opener against the Arizona Cardinals. However, Crosby got a crack at outside competition during the team's joint practices with the Houston Texans on Tuesday.
While the Raiders lost the day overall, which was expected, given that Las Vegas was the NFL's worst team last year and the Texans have won a playoff game in three consecutive years, Crosby was undoubtedly a winner from the session. It was quite obvious how much he affected those around him.
The Maxx Crosby effect is alive and well.
Maxx Crosby dominates in Raiders' joint practice with Texans
Reports from the joint practice indicated that Crosby was a bright spot for the Raiders' defense, as he notched multiple sacks on Houston starter CJ Stroud. He had multiple good series, and although he wasn't perfect, he was largely smoking the Texans' offensive line against the pass and run.
What this also did was open up other rushers to have one-on-one or more favorable matchups. Kwity Paye took full advantage of this, as he put together his best day as a Raider to date during Tuesday's practice.
Paye recorded multiple sacks and pressures, and he made a nice play or two against the run as well. In last Thursday's preseason game, with Crosby sidelined, Paye had a hard time making an impact, as he was kept off the box score in 11 defensive snaps.
With Crosby back in the lineup, though, Paye started to show why the team invested $48 million in him over the next three seasons. And this came against a Texans offensive line that is better than what he faced in the preseason opener against the Cardinals.
Now, the run defense, in an overall sense, still left a lot to be desired. But the pass-rush was much better with Crosby in the lineup, not just because of what Crosby does himself, but because of how much attention he accrues, which makes life easier on all those around him.
Crosby also got into a bit of a scuffle during the practice, just like he did with Kirk Cousins earlier in training camp. This is also part of the Maxx Crosby effect, as he is the team's undisputed emotional leader and the one to get everyone riled up and ready to go.
That was evident during Tuesday's joint practice, and with more talent around him on all three levels than ever before, the Raiders' defense may actually start to be a formidable unit with Crosby at the helm, both making an impact himself and making the game simpler for everyone in his orbit.
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