The Las Vegas Raiders’ nightmare 2024 season is almost over, and Raider Nation can mercifully see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Very little has gone right for Coach Antonio Pierce’s team in 2024. They are 3-12 on the year and not currently in the top five of the 2025 NFL Draft order.
Raiders fans wish the team could at least land a higher draft selection if the team is going to miss the postseason again and fail to compete hard enough in most games.
The on-field product was brutal, and the team also lost several key contributors to serious injuries. Those ailments derailed what could have been a season of continued momentum.
No injury, however, was more significant than the one that happened to the heart and soul of the Raiders, defensive end Maxx Crosby.
For the last six seasons, Crosby could not be forced off the field. For the first time in his elite career, he did not suit up on a Sunday afternoon. An ankle injury cost Crosby the rest of his 2024 season, to Raider Nation's dismay.
Crosby’s relationship with the Raiders organization goes beyond the tackles he makes and the quarterbacks he sacks on the field. Crosby was born to be a Raider; he lives and breathes what it means to be a Raider every day.
To lose him for the final games of a lost season is heartbreak on a significant scale.
Crosby has been well on his way to becoming one of the greatest Raiders ever. He already leads the franchise in tackles for loss and quarterback hits by a wide margin and ranks fifth all-time in sacks at 59.5. He was two sacks away from tying Ike Lassiter for fourth in franchise history.
The Raiders could have also won more games if Crosby was not hurt. He is one of the best defensive players in the NFL, and his impact on games is felt every snap.
It has been a nightmarish season for the Silver and Black in 2024. Nothing has been more painful for the team than seeing their leader, captain, and best player go down with an injury, something that has never happened before.
