Las Vegas Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce said on Friday that defensive end Maxx Crosby has been ruled out for Sunday's matchup against the Cleveland Browns. However, when the injury report was released, there was conflicting information.
The Raiders have actually listed Crosby as "doubtful." While that means he's still unlikely the play, it leaves the door open for him to suit up. You'd have to imagine that the team wanted to rule him out but Crosby pushed to at least be considered doubtful in case he feels better.
It would be a massive turn of events if Crosby actually did play. For the Raiders to even consider ruling him out, the injury has to be serious. We've seen him play through some serious injuries in the past and he's never missed a game in over five seasons.
The idea of missing his first career game has to be eating Crosby alive. That said, the Raiders do need to protect him from himself. He's the face of the franchise and their best player. He can't risk making the injury worse and potentially missing the season.
He's dealing with a high ankle sprain and that could be a precursor to tearing your Achilles. That's an injury that could have long-term effects. Crosby will likely at least try to test out his ankle to see if he can play on Sunday.
The fact that this is a home game also has to play a factor. The Raiders were embarrassed by a terrible Panthers team in their home opener. They're already missing Davante Adams and missing Crosby only makes things worse.
Regardless, Crosby shouldn't put his body at risk in hopes of giving the fans a show. Fans would much prefer that he gets healthy and can start making an impact again. He was pretty ineffective against the Panthers last week in large part due to his ankle injury.