The Las Vegas Raiders entered the offseason with three major issues to address: Who they would hire as head coach, what they would do with the No. 1 pick, and what Maxx Crosby's future is. They checked the first of those boxes, as they hired Klint Kubiak, who was officially introduced on Tuesday.
Although it won't happen for months, the second issue also no longer seems like much of a question, as the overwhelming odds are that the Raiders will select Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza at No. 1 to pair with Kubiak. There is far less certainty, however, about what will happen with Crosby.
On one hand, he has been at Raiders HQ every day and continues to do his interviews in the team's official gear. On the other hand, new rumors regarding his future with the franchise have come out almost daily, and he has yet to address them in any meaningful way, let alone shut them down.
Crosby did speak with Kubiak on Tuesday, but he was not in the room for his introductory presser. Rich Gannon, one of six Raiders legends on the stage with Kubiak and John Spytek, also had the opportunity to speak with the five-time Pro Bowler, and he shared details from that conversation.
Raiders legend Rich Gannon provides details of his conversation with Maxx Crosby
Raiders fans should brace themselves, as rumors surrounding Crosby will likely continue until one of three things occurs: He is traded, he shuts down the rumors, or the NFL Draft passes. Plenty of conflicting reports have surfaced about his future, making it impossible to know what is actually true.
While he could easily cancel the chatter, he has opted not to, leading to further speculation that his time in Las Vegas is coming to an end. Gannon, who spoke with Crosby on Tuesday, does not exactly see things that way, which he shared on The SiriusXM Blitz.
"Maxx and I are talking. We're talking about everything about last year, this year, and his rehab. Dude, he's in the building every day. He's so dialed in. He's in the weight room working out. He's rehabbing, and he said, 'I'm going to be fine in a couple of weeks.' All this nonsense about he no longer wants to play for the Raiders, I don't know that to be (true)," Gannon said. "Talking to him yesterday, that is about the furthest thing from that guy's mind. He feels like there's unfinished business. Is he tired and fatigued with all the turnover and the starting over again? Absolutely, who wouldn't be? But this guy is wired differently."
Gannon's comments certainly throw an interesting curveball into all of the Crosby trade drama. If he indeed said that there is unfinished business in Las Vegas, then that certainly contradicts the idea that Crosby has already decided that he wants to be traded.
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Of course, fans should take the comments with a grain of salt. Despite the 2002 NFL MVP claiming that a trade is the furthest thing from Crosby's mind, the two-time All-Pro pass rusher likely wouldn't share his desire to be traded with Gannon unless they had some sort of prior relationship.
And Gannon wouldn't air out Crosby's desires if the two were close and if Gannon truly thought he wanted out. NFL insider Jordan Schultz backed Gannon's sentiment, claiming that the Raiders should keep Crosby during an appearance on SiriusXM NFL Radio's Airing It Out on Wednesday.
"All I know is that Klint Kubiak is in the business of having good players and so is John Spytek and so is Tom Brady," Schultz said. "And right now, Maxx Crosby is their best player, so, to me, it would make sense to keep him."
There will be conflicting reports about what Crosby wants and whether or not Las Vegas should move him until he comes out and takes a stance one way or another. Unfortunately for Raider Nation, he doesn't appear likely to do that anytime soon. But Gannon seemingly thinks this is all a big nothing.