Getty Maxx Crosby of the Las Vegas Raiders.
There’s still a lot of football to play this NFL season, but the Las Vegas Raiders have to already be thinking about quarterback. Gardner Minshew has been worse than expected and Aidan O’Connell is on Injured Reserve.
Luckily for the Raiders, there are some appealing quarterback prospects in college football. Defensive end Maxx Crosby isn’t shy about the fact that his team needs to upgrade at quarterback and he listed Miami’s Cam Ward and Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders as two players he’s hoping to play with.
“He [Cam Ward] might go No. 1. It is between him and Shedeur [Sanders],” Crosby said on the October 22 episode of “The Rush.” “100 percent, those two are the coldest ones. They train together. … I like what Colorado is doing. They are cooking. And Miami is cooking. We need to have them after the season, get on our show, and bid on why they should be the first quarterback taken. I want that to happen on ‘The Rush.’ We will make that happen. … I feel like it will be golden.
” … Hopefully, one of them, I don’t know, maybe one of them is going to be my quarterback. I cannot fully bully them. But at practice, you know what time it is. If you come to the Raiders, you will be hit as a quarterback in practice. So, your red jersey is all good. It is all love, but I will not hurt you. I will just let you feel it.”
Cam Ward or Shedeur Sanders?
Out of all the players who were expected to be the top quarterback prospects in 2025, Ward and Sanders seem to be separating themselves. Georgia’s Carson Beck has been a flop and Texas’ Quinn Ewers has been hurt. Alabama’s Jalen Milroe has shown flashes but he’s far too inconsistent.
Unless any of those three turn things around, it’ll be Ward or Sanders who is the first quarterback off the board. As of now, Sanders appears to have the edge. He doesn’t make as many exciting plays as Ward but he’s far more consistent and isn’t playing with the same amount of talent.
Sanders Seems to Be More Natural Fit
Ward is an exciting player but he’s also been in college for five years. It’s rare that those types of quarterbacks have success at the NFL level. Plus, Sanders to the Raiders has been talked about for a while.
From his father Deion Sanders saying he wouldn’t mind his son playing Las Vegas to owner Mark Davis chatting with the quarterback at an Aces game, there seems to be mutual interest. That said, the Raiders need to ensure they have a top pick if they want Sanders.
It’s possible that he’ll go as early as No. 1. The Raiders are 2-5 right now and capable of getting the No. 1 pick. If that doesn’t happen, they may need to trade up. They just have to hope whoever ends up with the No. 1 pick doesn’t need a quarterback. The Raiders keep missing out on top quarterbacks but they’re going to have to make a big move eventually. After Sanders and Ward, this isn’t considered a very good quarterback class.
