Raiders' Maxx Crosby breaks silence amid controversy, trade rumors

Star pass-rusher Maxx Crosby recently told NFL insider Jay Glazer of Fox Sports that he's "not happy" about being shut down by the Las Vegas Raiders for the remainder of the season because of a lingering knee injury.

During the latest edition of the "Let's Go!" SiriusXM show and podcast, Crosby confirmed that he had returned to the Raiders after he reportedly stormed out of the team’s facility on Dec. 26.

Maxx Crosby has "a lot of thoughts and emotions" amid trade rumors

“I’m honestly doing phenomenal," Crosby told legendary broadcaster Jim Gray. "I’m here at the facility. I have a lot of thoughts and emotions, but I’m focused on putting the work in and being with my teammates. At the end of the day, I love being with my guys. That’s it. I’m just going to leave it at that. I’m doing great, though. Happy, that’s all I can say." 

On Sunday, Glazer hinted that the Raiders may need to do "some massaging" to keep Crosby from requesting a trade during the upcoming offseason. According to Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio, Crosby did not address whether or not he wants to continue playing for the Raiders during his chat with Gray.

Crosby previously insisted he wanted to retire a one-club man. The Raiders drafted the 28-year-old in 2019, and he signed a three-year, $106.5M contract extension this past offseason. 

"...When it comes to football, there’s certain things that I truly believe in, and I feel like there’s core principles that you gotta live by, and there’s a certain way the game needs to be played," Crosby added about his desire to continue playing for a Raiders team that will enter Week 18 at 2-14. "And there’s a certain approach that you have when you go into the field. And the way you look at it, from my perspective, is you play to win. You play for your teammates, you put everything you have into the game, no matter what it is. There’s gonna be bumps and bruises. You’re gonna be banged up. That is a part of the game and the nature of the beast." 

Could Maxx Crosby follow Pete Carroll out of Las Vegas? 

On Wednesday, ESPN's Dan Graziano noted that "a lot of people" within the league believe the Raiders could part ways with first-year head coach Pete Carroll as soon as next week.

"It has gone quite poorly," Graziano explained, "and [the Raiders] seem to be positioning themselves for the No. 1 draft pick, so the theory is they might want someone else around to develop that selection if it's a quarterback." 

Crosby had been a Carroll supporter, but it's unclear if the events of the past week have damaged that relationship.