Maxx Crosby Las Vegas Raiders Chicago Bears
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Maxx Crosby #98 of the Las Vegas Raiders
The Detroit Lions have sat back and watched on Thursday, March 5 as multiple teams have either fallen out of the trade sweepstakes for Maxx Crosby or made moves signaling they are heading in other directions.
Most recently, the Dallas Cowboys appeared to bow out, citing the Las Vegas Raiders‘ asking price of two first-round picks as simply too much to spend after acquiring two firsts in the deal that sent Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers last summer.
“On Maxx Crosby and the Cowboys being at play here …. here is what I’m being told from a team source. ‘Raiders are talking to a lot of people. But we would not give up two first rounders,'” Jane Slater of NFL Network reported via X. “That’s the situation now. Will that change? I don’t know but I checked for those of you interested.”
Lions Can Still Afford to Deal 2 First-Round Picks for Maxx Crosby, Despite Terrion Arnold’s Off-Field Concerns
Terrion Arnold
GettyDetroit Lions cornerback Terrion Arnold.
That equates to great news for the Lions, who league sources linked to an aggressive pursuit of Crosby during last week’s NFL Combine.
“According to many in league circles, Detroit general manager Brad Holmes was more than willing to be aggressive to meet the trade demands of the Las Vegas Raiders, which included parting ways with two-first round draft picks,” John Maakaron of SI wrote. “Detroit’s entire coaching staff and front office were in agreement that adding Crosby would have been a move that would instantly put the team in serious contention to win the Super Bowl.”
Maakaron added later in the report that the off-field legal problems threatening cornerback Terrion Arnold’s status might lead the Lions to rethink parting with two firsts for Crosby because of the help the secondary might need in the form of a young, talented player on an inexpensive rookie contract.
That said, Arnold’s issues could take months, or even years, to resolve in the courts. And regardless of outcome, a well-known counter to secondary deficiencies is to field an excellent pass-rush that can get home early and often by rushing just four. Pairing Crosby with Aidan Hutchinson would render the Lions’ defense among the best in the NFL at doing exactly that.
Bears Appear to Have Turned Focus Away From Maxx Crosby, Toward Offensive Line and Tyler Linderbaum
Tyler Linderbaum
GettyBaltimore Ravens center Tyler Linderbaum.
The Chicago Bears, Detroit’s NFC North rival that dethroned the Lions after consecutive division championships in 2023 and 2024, were perhaps the favorite across the entire NFL to deal for Crosby for much of the last week.
However, most trade packages included wide receiver DJ Moore as the key personnel piece in a return headlined by multiple draft picks. Chicago wiped that possibility off the board by flipping Moore and a fifth-round pick to the Buffalo Bills on Thursday for a second-rounder next month.
The Bears still have the draft capital to pursue Crosby, but after Drew Dalman’s unexpected decision to retire earlier this week, the reigning division champs all of a sudden have a major need at the center of the offensive line.
ESPN’s Courtney Cronin noted Thursday that Chicago is now positioned strongly to pursue Tyler Linderbaum on an historic deal to fill that role, which would probably mean going a less expensive route at edge-rusher than a trade for Crosby — most likely via free agency, where adding a talented player would only cost the Bears a contract and not multiple draft assets as well.