Maxx Crosby’s name is already back in the trade conversation, and the San Francisco 49ers are the team drawing the clearest line of interest.
Bleacher Report’s Gary Davenport put Crosby at the top of his list of NFL stars most likely to seek a trade, and he singled out San Francisco as a destination that would make sense if the Las Vegas Raiders stumble during the 2026 season. Davenport’s view is simple: Crosby is the most valuable chip the Raiders have, and a contender with pass-rush questions could come calling.
“There are multiple contenders who could use the services of an elite edge-rusher who just logged 10 sacks and 28 tackles for loss in an injury-shortened 2025 campaign,” Davenport wrote on July 15. “And Crosby is easily the most valuable trade chip Las Vegas has.
Crosby may not be publicly demanding a trade yet, but he wouldn’t be annoyed if he wound up in, say, San Francisco. And that demand may yet come, especially if the Raiders struggle in 2026.”
The fit is obvious on paper. The 49ers already have Nick Bosa, one of the league’s best defensive players, but injuries have left the rest of that front in question. Adding Crosby would give San Francisco another elite edge threat and make an already dangerous defense even more intimidating.
There’s also a practical reason Crosby’s name keeps surfacing: his health. He is still recovering from surgery to repair a torn meniscus, and that injury played a major role in one of the offseason’s biggest storylines. The Raiders had agreed to send Crosby to the Baltimore Ravens for two first-round picks, but the deal collapsed after Baltimore reviewed his medical evaluation.
“The Baltimore Ravens have backed out of our trade agreement for Maxx Crosby,” the Raiders said in a statement shared by ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter on March 10. “We will have no further comment at this time.”
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport later added more detail on why Baltimore pulled out. “Maxx Crosby had surgery to repair his meniscus right around the end of the season, and meniscus recoveries take 3-4 months,” Rapoport said. “… it appears the Ravens are just not comfortable with what they found during the medical exams for Maxx Crosby, so now the trade is off.”
San Francisco’s interest would come with its own injury concerns, though. Bosa played only three games in the 2025 season before tearing his ACL, and former first-round pick Mykel Williams is still coming back from a torn ACL suffered in Week 9 of his rookie year.
Bradley Locker of Pro Football Focus said Williams needs a big jump in 2026. He pointed to a 51.9 pass-rush grade that ranked 90th among 95 qualified edge defenders, along with just 19 pressures before the injury.
If Crosby ever does ask out, the 49ers would instantly become one of the most discussed teams in the league. The bigger question is whether they could add another premium pass rusher while still leaning on two players working back from major knee injuries.
In Other News...
Klint Kubiak Is Already Putting Raiders Through A Crucial Early Test
The Raiders spent the offseason remaking themselves, from the coaching staff down to the roster, and now the real work has shifted to training camp. With Klint Kubiak in charge, the early days are less about polishing and more about teaching, as the team tries to install new offensive and defensive schemes while building the kind of continuity that can carry into Week 1.
Mike McCoy has already pointed to Kubiaks approach as a major part of the reset, noting the new head coach is setting a demanding tone from the start. For a team trying to move past another disappointing season, that matters because the challenge is bigger than learning a playbook. The Raiders are trying to change the standard inside the building, and camp is where that has to start showing up. [Read more 🡒]
Raiders Still Can't Escape The Davante Adams Regret
The Raiders have spent the better part of two seasons trying to move on from Davante Adams, but the league still has not fully moved on from the idea of him as a premier receiver. Even after the trade to the Jets and a year that produced his lowest receiving yardage since 2015, Adams is still being talked about by NFL executives, coaches and scouts as one of the game's better wideouts, the kind of player whose instincts and route running keep him in a different tier than most of the position.
For Las Vegas, that only sharpens the regret. The Raiders already dealt away Adams, then moved Jakobi Meyers in consecutive seasons, leaving the roster without a clear high-end receiver to anchor the passing game. Meanwhile, the wider league conversation still treats Adams like a top-10 talent, which is a tough reminder of what the Raiders once had and no longer do. [Read more 🡒]
Jon Gruden Sounds Off On What Modern NFL Has Become
Jon Gruden has not coached in the NFL since 2021, but he still has plenty to say about where the league is headed. The former Raiders head coach and Super Bowl winner has been working with collegiate quarterbacks, and in recent comments he argued the modern game is losing something fundamental when teams do not properly identify defenses, sort out coverages and communicate before the snap.
Grudens criticism is rooted in the idea that football is becoming less about recognition and execution and more about speed without enough thought. Even away from the sideline, he remains plugged into the quarterback world through his mentoring work, including hosting elite college passers at his camp, and his blunt view of the league suggests he is still watching the sport with a coachs eye and a veterans frustration. [Read more 🡒]