It is common for offenses to struggle during the first few weeks of the NFL regular season.
Teams are returning to football, trying to get their legs under them as they work their way through the season.
This could be the case for the Las Vegas Raiders, who scored just 10 points in their opening game against the Los Angeles Chargers. The Raiders now head to Baltimore to take on the Ravens, who have an excellent defense.
With another tough defensive match-up coming for the Raiders’ offense, they could be looking for inspiration from all different places.
That could even mean on the defensive side.
Defensive end Maxx Crosby knows the importance of relationships with players on both sides of the ball. He is the heart and soul of the Raiders. If he can offer some kind of help, he will.
Crosby joined the "Let’s Go!" podcast with Jim Gray, Bill Belichick and Peter King to discuss.
“As a defensive player and as a leader, you have to have relationships across the board,” Crosby said. “To try to get the best out of your teammates, and you have to know your teammates, have real relationships to get the best out of them. So, in those certain situations, I’m not a play-caller, I don’t get into that, that’s not my job. My job is to lead and help, and inspire, and push and pull people when they don’t want to be pulled, and that’s what I do.”
Crosby’s leadership is invaluable to the team, and he uses that in the right way.
“So, whether that’s our O-Line, our quarterback, everybody on defense, our receivers, if I can help them in any way I can, whatever that may be," Crosby said. "It may be the smallest thing; it may be a little pointer I can give somebody, if I can see something from a D-Lineman who’s rushing against one of our tackles and say, ‘Hey, he’s giving this away,’ or ‘Every time he goes inside, his back foot’s-’ the little things like that, that can give us a better chance to be successful. So, I’m always doing that.”
While Crosby will not suit up on offense and try to score points himself, his leadership can be valuable. He can provide a defensive perspective for the Raiders’ offense, which they can use to score points.
"Let’s Go!" is available wherever you listen to podcasts.
