Earlier this week, with Sunday's game against the New York Giants carrying huge implications for who will get the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby made his feelings about the team "earning" said pick absolutely clear.
"Yeah, I don't give a (expletive) about the pick. I don't play for that,” Crosby said, via ESPN's Ryan McFadden.
On Wednesday, the Raiders shut down tight end Brock Bowers and safety Jeremy Chinn for the season. That invited the dreaded t-word that Crosby unsurprisingly showed no interest in being a part of the day before.
Raiders are going all-in on tanking by shutting down Maxx Crosby
On Friday, FOX Sports' Jay Glazer was first to report the Raiders told Crosby that they want to shut him down for the final two games of the 2025 NFL season. He has been battling a knee issue since October, so the move makes sense in that way as another lost season winds down.
Risking greater injury to a core player in meaningless games, similarly to Bowers, who has battled a knee injury of his own since Week 1, is just not worth it.
Of course, the idea of being shut down for the season landed exactly as expected with the prideful Crosby. Glazer further reported the five-time Pro Bowler "vehemently disagreed" with the move and left the facility.
McFadden has subsequently reported confirmation from head coach Pete Carroll that Crosby will not play against the Giants, and the veteran defensive end indeed left the facility after fans were told as much.
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Actively shutting down players with two games to go means you're trying to lose out and get the No. 1 overall pick, which should be the Raiders' plan. It also invites the idea that Carroll may be back for a second season, which no one in Raider Nation wants.
Shutting Bowers, Chinn or most other injured veteran players down is one thing. Do it to Crosby, who has been a Raider his entire career and has remained committed to the franchise through thick and a lot of thin, is on a different level as an all-in move to tank.
It's too early to know where things will go from here with Crosby. But no one, including Carroll, apparently, is surprised he left the building after being told of the decision to shut him down.