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Despite Raiders’ Struggles, Maxx Crosby Is Prepared For Monstrous 2024 Season

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - OCTOBER 22: Maxx Crosby #98 of the Las Vegas Raiders celebrates after a sack during the second quarter against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on October 22, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)

The Las Vegas Raiders have a number of issues to address throughout their depth chart, starting with quarterback. One issue the team doesn’t have, however, is a lack of defensive leadership. Maxx Crosby has that covered.

Speaking with ESPN’s Paul Gutierrez earlier this week, Crosby spoke about his 2023 season, during which he was brilliant but also limited by knee ailments. Despite earning 14.5 sacks, a career-high, and making his third straight Pro Bowl, Crosby believes he still has room to improve and has taken this off-season to make the necessary changes.

“It made me take a step back so I could take three steps forward, and I feel like that’s what this offseason was all about — my one goal is to be the best in the world, pound for pound, and I talk about it, I’m about it, I live it every single day and whatever street I’ve got to travel to get to where I want to go, I’m going to do that,” Crosby said. “So I’m exhausting every single resource I possibly have to have the best season of my career.”

Over the past five seasons, Crosby has blossomed into a monstrous defender, keeping the Raiders in contention at times when they had no right to do so. Fighting his way through multiple surgeries and several years of anemic Raiders offenses, Crosby has led the defense to strong seasons under adverse conditions.

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“I had to get two major surgeries, and it’s been different, but at the end of the day, there’s not one street to get to where you want to go, there’s multiple,” Crosby said. “And for me, I trust the people around me, trust my team, everyone involved, to get me back to 100 percent. And then also taking that next step.”

This season, expectations will be low from the jump for the Raiders, as quarterbacks Aidan O’Connell and Gardner Minshew settle an underwhelming depth chart battle for the starting position. Coming off his best season, however, expectations for Crosby will be extremely high, regardless of the team’s performance elsewhere.