As the Las Vegas Raiders continue to stack losing seasons, trade rumors have not been far from Maxx Crosby's name. Things started to take on a different tone as this season wound down, though, with Crosby being shut down with a few games left as he continued to deal with a knee injury.
In the immediate wake of that move to shut Crosby down, FOX Sports NFL insider Jay Glazer offered some unique insight.
"Look, I've been on the phone with Maxx a bunch over the last couple days. He is not happy. He's like, 'Jay, I play football. This is what I do, I've had a knee injury since like Week 3, I've played with it the entire time. They told me they're shutting me down,'" Glazer said, to which Crosby allegedly responded. "I was like, 'No, absolutely not. I play football. There's no shutting it down for me; I want to be out there. I want to be out there with my teammates.' It just wasn't acceptable to Maxx. Remember back at the trade deadline, guys, I said that Maxx Crosby told me and told the Raiders, 'I don't wanna get traded anywhere, no matter what.' You gotta wonder now if that still holds true, despite this."
No one would blame Crosby for being frustrated with every aspect of his situation in Las Vegas. Laying it on the line like he does while losses pile up is bad enough. Being shut down to help ensure the Raiders earned the No. 1 pick in April's draft could have easily been his breaking point.
In a broad sense, independent of his potential desire to be moved, the Raiders should be open to trading Crosby this offseason. One of the best edge rushers in the league shouldn't, and won't, just be given away, though.
Jay Glazer sets bar for what Raiders could get in Maxx Crosby trade
Glazer appeared on Wednesday's episode of Yahoo! Sports Daily with Jason Fitzgerald and Caroline Fenton. Earlier that day, The Athletic's Dianna Russini reported that Crosby had told her that he wanted to play for New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel.
So, Crosby's future was a natural topic, and Glazer gave his side of the story, based on talking to Crosby when the news that he was being shut down came out. Fitzgerald asked Glazer if he thinks Crosby's time with the Raiders is done.
"I do", Glazer said.
Fitzgerald then asked Glazer if he thought a deal would go down before the draft, to which Glazer responded that he believes one will. After Fenton asked about potential landing spots, Fitzgerald asked what kind of trade haul the Raiders could fetch in return for Crosby's services.
"Probably more than Micah," Glazer said.
RELATED: Dianna Russini left a breadcrumb about where Maxx Crosby may want to play
"Micah," of course, is edge rusher Micah Parsons, who the Dallas Cowboys traded to the Green Bay Packers just before this season started. In that trade, the Packers gave up first-round picks in 2026 and 2027 as well as three-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Kenny Clark.
They also made Parsons the highest-paid edge rusher in the league, which a team that acquires Crosby wouldn't necessarily have to do, considering he is under a relatively favorable contract through 2029.
Parsons is just 26 years old, which helped drive his trade price up, while Crosby will turn 29 before next season starts. That's a difference that can't be ignored as the potential return in a trade is considered.
But if the Raiders can get two first-round picks and a Pro-Bowl level player for Crosby, they should do it without hesitation. If they can do better than that, as Glazer suggests, then it should be 99.9% done before it can become official when the new league year starts.
In any case, Crosby's time in the Silver and Black may indeed be winding down. Glazer's bombshell report isn't actually that surprising, and if the Raiders are willing to entertain moving him, regardless of what they can actually get, they won't lack for suitors.