Analyst praises Maxx Crosby as franchise player

Las Vegas Raiders fans have known for quite some time now that Maxx Crosby is the cornerstone the franchise is built around.

With his leadership both on and off the field, it is not difficult to see why Crosby is deserving of that title. Signing a three-year, $106.5 million contract that keeps him with the Raiders until 2029, Crosby has the statistical dominance to prove why that is a good investment. The hope is now that the elite pass rusher’s patience can be rewarded with strong play elsewhere from the team, giving Crosby his first taste of extended postseason action.

While Raiders fans have known this all before, other analysts are having no problem giving Crosby his flowers.

Crosby is receiving plenty of recognition as the face of the Raiders franchise.

In his list of players who teams can build themselves around, Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox named Crosby as one such player.

“A series of ankle injuries limited Las Vegas Raiders pass-rusher Maxx Crosby to 12 games and 7.5 sacks in 2024. That, combined with Crosby’s age (28 in August) has him at the tail end of our rankings,” wrote Knox.

“With that said, the four-time Pro Bowler is still one of the best veteran edge-rushers in the NFL. He has taken over for the likes of Myles Garrett and T.J. Watt as an elder statesman among true franchise players.

When healthy two years ago, Crosby amassed 14.5 sacks, 50 quarterback pressures, 90 total tackles and a league-high 23 tackles for loss (tied with Danielle Hunter). There aren’t many people on the planet who can disrupt plays in the backfield like Crosby when he’s at his best.”

While the list did exclude the likes of Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen and Garrett, the fact that Crosby is getting such lofty recognition is impressive.

It would have been easy to limit the list of franchise players to the top tier or two of quarterbacks and a smattering of elite offensive players and called it a day. However, for Crosby to earn his way to a similar plateau is a testament to how hard he has had to work to reach the level he has.

With Crosby looking healthy heading into the upcoming season, opposing offenses will have their hands full keeping him away from their quarterback.