Maxx Crosby has been a trooper during the first several weeks of the 2024 season, as he’s played through injuries and inconsistent play from the Las Vegas Raiders.
However, Week 6 was one of those showings that exacerbated the ongoing drama with the franchise as they were blown out at home by the Pittsburgh Steelers. Coming into the matchup, the Steelers were reeling from consecutive losses but managed to end their skid against the Raiders, who looked outmatched in every phase of the game.
Amid the loss, cameras caught Crosby shoving run game coordinator and linebackers coach Mike Caldwell on the sidelines. The action caused some on social media to speculate that Crosby’s frustrations are starting to leak out on the field, but it turns out it was simply the way the two greet each other via Paul Gutierrez of ESPN:
“As frustrating a day as Maxx Crosby had in the Las Vegas Raiders’ 32-13 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Raiders Pro Bowl edge rusher said his late-game sideline shove of assistant coach Mike Caldwell was a “love push.”
The incident was caught by CBS cameras after Crosby’s shared sack of Justin Fields with defensive tackle John Jenkins late in the game.”
Crosby himself explained there’s no ill will toward the two and that they have a good relationship:
“I have my phone blowing up as I’m in the cold tub, trying to get ready for next week already, and people, you know how they do it — they just spin narratives,” Crosby said with a laugh. “Mike Caldwell’s a great dude. We have a great relationship and we do that all the time. It’s like people look at it, ‘Oh, they’re losing and then Maxx pushes him.'”
When a team is losing, it’s easy to blow things out of proportion, and it appears that Crosby was the latest victim of fan and analyst speculation. Still, it doesn’t change the fact that Las Vegas has been playing poorly, and it’s anyone’s guess as to when they can turn things around.
With all the distractions present, Crosby has remained steadfast and will need to show up next week against the Los Angeles Rams if he wants to turn the team’s fortunes around.
Maxx Crosby Reiterates Desire to Stay with Raiders
Davante Adams’ trade request looms large over the Raiders organization, but Crosby emphasized that he wants to stay with Las Vegas no matter what.
