Maxx Crosby Cameron Heyward
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Pittsburgh Steelers defensive lineman Cameron Heyward revealed what Maxx Crosby had to say about the Baltimore Ravens after his failed trade.
The Buffalo Bills failed to land star edge rusher Maxx Crosby when he went up on the trade block, but could potentially get another chance later this year — if the Las Vegas Raiders don’t get their rebuild on track.
Crosby was set to join the rival Baltimore Ravens before they abruptly backed out of the trade, leaving Crosby to return to the Raiders. Though the team doesn’t have any immediate plans to try again with a new trade, one NFL insider predicted they could be willing to part with him at some point during the upcoming season.
Maxx Crosby Could Be NFL Trade Deadline Candidate
Reporter Albert Breer of SI.com said this week that the Raiders have welcomed Crosby back into the fold and will be making him the centerpiece of their rebuilding effort. With quarterback Fernando Mendoza expected to join the team after the NFL draft, the Raiders have hopes of climbing back into playoff contention.
If the Raiders can’t get their season on track, Breer suggested, then the team could be willing to revisit their trade idea.
“If he’s going to be traded, I think it’s going to have to come after Maxx Crosby gets back on the field and plays really well,” Breer said on The MMQB NFL Podcast, “so people will forget about everything that just happened.”
The Bills reportedly made an offer to the Raiders, but their first-round pick was too low compared to the one the Ravens were offering. Breer’s suggestion that the Raiders could try again would likely put the Bills back in contention, as long as they’re willing to part with some significant draft capital.
But it could take some convincing for the Raiders to actually part with Crosby again. ESPN’s Mina Kines suggested the team would want to make him a cornerstone of their rebuilding effort, knowing that Mendoza will need a strong defense for complementary football.
“You have the opportunity here to get a motivated Maxx Crosby. He claims a healthy Maxx Crosby. And they have the money to afford him,” Kines said, via SI.com. “The crazy thing about this is the Raiders have so much cap space. And they still have so much cap space; they can afford it. I think it helps [Fernando] Mendoza to have a functional pass rush on the other side of the ball.”
Bills Could Take Another Route
The Bills may not be willing to wait until next season’s trade deadline to give their edge rushing group a major upgrade. CBS Sports analyst Josh Edwards predicted the Bills would use their first-round draft pick on Clemson pass rusher T.J. Parker, who would be a good replacement for the departed A.J. Epenesa.
“A.J. Epenesa is a free agent as of this writing, so the only edge rushers on the roster probably exempt from major roster decisions are Gregory Rousseau, newly signed Bradley Chubb and last year’s third-round pick, Landon Jackson,” Edwards wrote.
“T.J. Parker has the profile they’ve been drawn to in the past. Perhaps he’ll allow them to get off the carousel of acquiring a new 30-year-old every offseason.”