The Las Vegas Raiders don't have much to play for but pride during the final five games of the 2025 NFL season. While the fan base is largely in full-on tank mode, most of the players and coaches in the building know that they are fighting for their jobs and NFL futures.
While that is admirable and absolutely the way to approach something as fleeting as life in the NFL, the franchise's big picture and bottom line are also incredibly important. The Raiders can't lose their footing on the future too much while trying to cling to this broken season.
Last year, that meant finally letting Maxx Crosby rest by putting him on the Injured Reserve for the final five games of the campaign so that he could get several operations and be fully healthy for the following season. Unfortunately, that issue may be creeping up again.
Maxx Crosby misses Thursday practice after being limited on Wednesday
Crosby is typically limited during the first practice of the week, which makes a lot of sense. After all, he is a veteran player and often needs to take a load off after playing practically every down the week prior and being involved in countless big collisions that occur over the course of an NFL game.
On Wednesday's injury report ahead of Las Vegas' Week 14 clash with the Denver Broncos, Crosby was listed as "limited" with a knee injury, as he has been every Wednesday for the last several weeks. But something changed on Thursday.
ESPN's Ryan McFadden reported that Crosby wasn't just limited on Thursday, but that he did not see Crosby on the field during the portion of practice open to the media. This would be a major step back for the superstar edge rusher, and it would put his status for Sunday's game in jeopardy.
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Fans are largely in the boat of losing out this season, but that also needs to happen in a competitive way that showcases the growth of the Raiders' young players. But if Las Vegas is going to pull out a win and mess up their high draft spot, fans just assume it comes against the Broncos.
Not having Crosby in a matchup that the team is already outmatched in is not exactly great for Las Vegas' chances of winning, if they even had a chance to begin with. Yes, Malcolm Koonce has started to play a bit better, but he and Tyree Wilson still can't do a fraction of what Crosby can do.
As for the rest of the team, McFadden also reported that none of Alex Bachman, Dont'e Thornton Jr. and Michael Mayer participated for the second straight day. Dylan Parham did not participate on Wednesday, but returned for action on Thursday.