The Las Vegas Raiders brought in general manager John Spytek and head coach Pete Carroll this offseason with the intent to make the team better. Minority owner Tom Brady was a sounding board for owner Mark Davis as they rebuilt the four-win team.
That started with the acquisition of quarterback Geno Smith, as well as the re-signings of key players like edge rusher Malcolm Koonce and defensive tackle Adam Butler.
Las Vegas also added 11 new players through the 2025 NFL Draft and extended defensive end Maxx Crosby on a historic three-year, $106.5 million deal.
After such a brutal year in 2024, experts are hesitant to speak too highly of the Raiders, but expectations are certainly mounting as the team approaches training camp in late July.
Crosby has never shied away from expectations, however. He spoke at the Sack Summit last week and made an interesting comparison for the Raiders ahead of the 2025 NFL season.
“Individual success and things like that are awesome, but it’s not why you play the game. You play to win," Crosby said. "We just saw it in the NBA: OKC, just a couple years ago, was one of the worst teams in the league. But they had a lot of young guys, they trusted the process, they developed and now they’re the world champions."
These are obviously lofty expectations for a Las Vegas team that won just four games in 2024 and had the No. 6 overall pick. But the team's best player cannot stress enough how important it is for him to have this desire and lead by example.
“We’re trying to win. I want to win so badly. I put everything into it," Crosby said." I want everybody else to think like that. And that’s been my goal, just bringing as many guys along as I possibly can.”
Crosby has four Pro Bowls and two All-Pro honors to his name through six NFL seasons, but he has yet to taste the playoffs outside of the 2021 season.
He had a down year in 2024 as a result of injury, recording just 7.5 sacks and 17 tackles for loss in 12 games.
With Crosby and Koonce expected to be fully healthy, this Raiders defensive line could set the tone and help this team become one of the most improved in the NFL this season.
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