Maxx Crosby has endured some rough years with the Las Vegas Raiders despite his rise as one of the NFL’s best pass rushers.
Crosby developed into a bona fide superstar who is in contention for the NFL Defensive Player of the Year award every season, but the Raiders have lagged behind due to poor coaching and roster construction. Fortunately, Las Vegas overhauled the organization from top to bottom, and the team now looks poised to win more games during the 2025 season.
Around the league, there is a lot of excitement and anticipation for Jacksonville Jaguars rookie Travis Hunter as he looks to prove he can survive as a two-way player at the NFL level. Not only is Hunter an elite wideout, but he was also considered the best defensive back in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Crosby is high on Hunter as a player, but warns that the Jaguars might not be very eager to expose him to injury too much via The Rush With Maxx Crosby, as transcribed by Levi Dombro of Athlon Sports:
“Yeah, that’s a different animal bro,” Crosby said. “We’re in the NFL, I don’t think coaches are stupid. What I mean is, they’re going to do their best to protect their asset. It’s a business at the end of the day, you gotta have him out there for a duration of a whole season, so it’ll be interesting.”
There’s no doubt that Hunter can succeed as a wide receiver or defensive back in the league, but doing both for prolonged stretches will be difficult to accomplish given the rigors of the regular season. Jacksonville has little reason to overwork Hunter in his rookie year as the team still feels a couple of pieces short of truly competing, though he certainly can get by with being in specific packages on both sides of the field.
Hunter is one of the best overall prospects the NFL has seen in years, and it would be a shame to see his season cut short due to injury. Crosby sounds like one of many who are more concerned about Hunter’s long-term future versus what he can do in a game.
Maxx Crosby loves the energy Pete Carroll is bringing to the Raiders
The Raiders made a splash with their head coaching hire as they lured Pete Carroll back to the sidelines. So far, Carroll has endeared himself to the locker room as Maxx Crosby loves his energy.
