Maxx Crosby, the Las Vegas Raiders’ star defensive end, is a beastly pass rusher, and he is a fearsome presence for opposing quarterbacks across the NFL.
He is off to a good start this season, and so is his team, which is 1-1 after sneaking past the Baltimore Ravens 26-23 on Sunday.
Therefore, it may surprise people that a former Raiders head coach threatened to get rid of him during his first training camp.
Crosby recalled that practice during training camp in 2019 when he was batting balls away, but then-head coach Jon Gruden didn’t want him to do so and threatened to cut him.
Gruden was a hard-nosed, in-your-face coach, and he resigned during the 2021 season.
It was a good thing he didn’t follow through on his threat, because Crosby registered 10.0 sacks, 16 tackles for loss and 14 quarterback hits as a rookie and finished second in the Defensive Rookie of the Year balloting.
Last season, he put up 14.5 sacks and led the league in tackles for loss for the second year in a row while earning his third straight Pro Bowl nod.
Against Baltimore, a team some were picking to reach the Super Bowl when this season started, he made his presence felt with 2.0 sacks, four tackles for loss, two quarterback hits and one pass defended.
As a result, Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson, the reigning league MVP, struggled a bit, going 21 of 34, allowing Las Vegas to overcome a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to win.
