Tag: Maxx Crosby

3 causes for concern as the Raiders face the Browns Sunday

The biggest causes of concern for the Raiders in their Week 4 matchup with the Browns on Sunday.

I know what you’re thinking right now. What about this Raiders team *isn’t* a cause for concern right now? That’s fair. But I suppose some things are more glaring than others. Here are three big ones that come to mind.

Myles Garrett

Antonio Pierce was asked for his thoughts on Myles Garrett and he summed it up with one word – “Scary”. Garrett is the reigning Defensive Player of the Year and for good reason. He was in the top ten in sacks (14), tackles for loss (17), and QB hits (30), and pressures (86). Now, you can argue Maxx Crosby was better considering Crosby had better numbers in every one of those categories, but that’s not really the point here.

The point is Garrett is a problem. And the Raiders offensive tackles have not exactly shown the ability to keep even decent pass rushers out of the backfield this season. Even Kolton Miller has been uncharacteristically susceptible to getting beaten. And rookie DJ Glaze will be making his first start on the other side.

Stars injured

No question the Raiders have exactly two stars on their team. Maxx Crosby on defense and Davante Adams on offense. Neither of whom will play Sunday. Crosby is officially listed as Doubtful by Antonio Pierce said Friday Crosby would be OUT. Adams suffered a hamstring injury in practice this week and he’s been ruled OUT.

Even with Crosby playing last week, the defense gave up 36 points because Crosby was hobbled and not destroying the offense’s game plan. Now, to be without him entirely? Yikes.

The only game the Raiders won this season was when Adams was caught nine passes for 110 yards and had some masterful late game heroics. He won’t be an option in the pass game this week.

League worst ground game

Despite Raiders OC Luke Getsy’s laughable comment that the Raiders run game showed some improvement last week, it hasn’t. Their 2.8 rushing yards per attempt is easily the worst in the league. 

And get this, they are ALSO the worst run DEFENSE in the league, giving up a league worst 5.4 yards per carry.

The Browns are decent both in terms of yards per carry on the offense (4.3) and yards per carry allowed by the defense (4.4). Both stats are above league average.

Also see: 3 Reasons for optimism for Raiders vs Browns

String of injuries instantly flips Raiders from favorites to underdogs vs Browns

In a matter of moments, Raiders went from favorites to underdogs vs Browns

Antonio Pierce took to the podium Friday and in a matter of moments sent a shockwave through the oddsmakers. All with one word — OUT.

Pierce was asked about the game status for several Raiders starters for Sunday’s game against the Browns. His response each time?…

Maxx Crosby? OUT

Davante Adams? OUT

Michael Mayer? OUT

Divine Deablo? OUT

Thayer Munford? OUT

The Raiders opened this week as two-point favorites over the Browns. And in with Pierce’s announcement, the oddsmakers flipped it to the Browns being favored by 1.5 points.

The week started with both teams missing their best player and elite edge rushers. While Crosby was nursing an ankle injury, he was expected to play just as he always has. But he will end up missing the first game of his career.

Meanwhile the Browns started the week with Myles Garrett missing practice only to get him back the next day and they expect him to play Sunday.

Add Davante’s sudden hamstring injury and scratch and there’s your 3.5-point swing right there.

See: 5 Raiders who will attempt to fill the shoes of Crosby and other missing starters

5 Raiders who will attempt to fill shoes of Maxx Crosby and other missing starters vs Browns

Some players are simply not replaceable. Maxx Crosby and Davante Adams are two such players. But the Raiders are in the position right now where they have no choice but to try and replace their roles in the lineup because both stars are OUT for …

Some players are simply not replaceable. Maxx Crosby and Davante Adams are two such players. But the Raiders are in the position right now where they have no choice but to try and replace their roles in the lineup because both stars are OUT for Sunday’s game against the Browns.

Here are the players who will be asked to step up in the absence of the missing Raiders starters.

Replacing: Davante Adams (hamstring)

When the Raiders want to make a play downfield, they usually look to either Davante Adams or Tre Tucker. The two are very different kinds of receivers, but in their own ways are capable of being a deep threat for this team. Tucker does it with pure speed. Adams does it was route running and savvy.

It doesn’t matter how it happens, it just has to happen. Or at least the threat of it must be there. Tucker has been the third receiver on this team all season, behind Adams and Jakobi Meyers. Now Tucker will step up and start on the outside, attempting to fill the void left by Adams’s absence.

Stepping up to fill the shoes of Tucker in the slot will be DJ Turner.

Replacing: Michael Mayer (personal)

Mayer has been a co-starter this season along with rookie Brock Bowers. He’s also been the primary blocking tight end. Harrison Bryant has been the third tight end on this team this season, though he’s only played 14 snaps on offense. The former Browns tight end was a priority free agent signing this offseason, and initially was expected to be the team’s number two tight end. That was until they had Brock Bowers fall into their lap in the draft and the team made other plans.

Replacing: Thayer Munford (knee/ankle)

Munford was lost on the second snap of last Sunday’s game and didn’t return. Coming in for him was DJ Glaze. The third round rookie had impressed in camp and was considered a viable option to step in at right tackle right away. And just two games into the season, that’s what he was asked to do. He played well in his debut last Sunday. He will be asked to do it again.

Replacing: Maxx Crosby (ankle)

Replacing might not be the right word here. No one is replacing Crosby on this team. He is the heart, soul, and motor of this Raiders defense. We saw that last week when his ankle had him not quite himself and missing quite a few snaps. As a result, Andy Dalton had a field day and the Raiders gave up 36 points to the Panthers.

Wilson’s 34 snaps (46%) was second among edge rushers as they mixed it up with Janarius Robinson, Charles Snowden, and Amari Gainer all getting a fair amount of snaps as well. The only edge rusher who was in the game on each of the 13 snaps Crosby missed was Wilson. Expect him to lead the edge rushers in snaps in this game with a healthy rotation to keep everyone fresh. I would also expect to see practice squad DE K’Lavon Chaisson activated and in that rotation.

Replacing: Divine Deablo (oblique)

Masterson started last Sunday’s game in place of Deablo as well. So, expect that to continue. The Raiders have a lot of linebackers on this team, but it’s really a matter of quantity more than quality. Most are relegated to special teams. The only ones who saw snaps last week other than the starters were Amari Gainer (10 snaps) and Tommy Eichenberg (five snaps).

Eichenberg is considered a middle linebacker, but with Robert Spillane playing every snap, the rookie was asked to play outside linebacker for his five snaps in the game. And Gainer spent all ten of his snaps lined up at edge rusher.

Browns dodge two Raiders stars ahead of Week 4 matchup in Vegas

The Browns catch a bit of a break as they look to right the ship in Vegas

The Cleveland Browns may be missing players of their own on Sunday, but the Las Vegas Raiders will be without both defensive end Maxx Crosby and wide receiver Davante Adams.

Coming off of a Pro Bowl season in 2023, Crosby is already up to 11 pressures and three sacks for the Raiders in this game. Especially considering the Browns will be without offensive tackles Jedrick Wills and Jack Conklin, this is a huge break for Cleveland.

Without Adams, the Las Vegas wide receiver room is left with just Jakobi Meyers, Tre Tucker, DJ Turner, Tyreik McAllister, and Ramel Keyton to lock horns with Denzel Ward, Greg Newsome II, and Martin Emerson Jr.

Crosby and Adams are among five total Raiders who will not play in this one. Tight end Michael Mayer, right tackle Thayer Munford, and linebacker Divine Deablo will also miss this Week 4 battle (according to ESPN’s Paul Gutierrez).

Looking to get back in the win column, can the Browns get the job done against a beat up Raiders team?

Injury news: Raiders DE Maxx Crosby, WR Davante Adams OUT vs Browns

Injury news: Raiders DE Maxx Crosby, WR Davante Adams OUT vs Browns

In some shocking news, the Raiders will be without their top two players when they face the Browns on Sunday at Allegiant.

Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce announced before Friday’s practice that both DE Maxx Crosby and WR Davante Adams will not play Sunday.

Crosby was struggling with an ankle injury in the team’s loss to the Panthers last Sunday. Adams injured his hamstring in practice Thursday and it’s apparently severe enough to knock him out for the game.

Pierce also announced several other Raiders will be OUT as well including TE Michael Mayer (personal), Thayer Munford (ankle/knee), LB Divine Deablo (oblique). and CB DeCamerion Richardson (hamstring).

Crosby missing a game is certainly news. This will be the first game he’s missed in his career. So, either the Raiders are forcing him to sit or he’s really seriously hurt.

I asked Crosby after the game last Sunday how his ankle injury compared to the knee injury he played with last season, and he suggested his ankle injury was worse. Keep in mind that knee injury put him in the hospital.

Maxx Crosby makes clear his choice for Raiders starting QB

Maxx Crosby makes clear his choice for Raiders starting QB

Monday, after lackluster offensive performance by the Raiders and quarterback Gardner Minshew, head coach Antonio Pierce was asked if Minshew could get benched in favor of former starter Aidan O’Connell, who came in a led a TD drive after the game was out of reach.

Pierce’s response to questions was non-committal, adding that he was going to speak with the team before making a decision.

Well, the leader of the team has spoken and made clear who his choice is.

“Gardner’s our guy. We know that,” Crosby said on SiriusXM’s Let’s Go Podcast. “Obviously we love Aidan. Aidan’s a stud. He helped us win a lot of games last year. But Gardner’s our guy. At the end of the day, I just wanna win. Gardner’s our quarterback, he’s our captain, and he has done a hell of a job so far. I mean, it wasn’t perfect, it wasn’t good enough, but it’s across the board. It’s not just Gardner, it’s not just the o-line, or receiver, whoever it is, it’s a collective group effort.”

It was Crosby who gave Minshew a pep talk in the second half of their come-from-behind win over the Ravens. He told Minshew to get back to playing like he did at Washington State and Minshew went out and did it.

There was none of that magic conjured up in the loss to the Panthers. Outside of one deep ball to Tre Tucker in the first half, the offense did basically nothing. And Minshew threw an interception as well.

It makes sense, however, to not give up on Minshew after such a performance. When Pierce named him the starter, he did so with the plan to give him at least the first quarter of the season. That means through at least next week and perhaps more before he considers pulling the rip cord and bringing in Aidan O’Connell.

O’Connell was the starter last season, but expecting him to be some kind of savior may be asking too much. There are bigger changes that need to occur to get this offense moving. It starts with why the run game is so utterly terrible. That should receive the most immediate urgent attention. Without it, who the quarterback is won’t matter much.

Raiders Week 3 snap counts: Rookie OL debut, Maxx Crosby with unusually low playing time

Raiders Rookie OL make their debuts while Maxx Crosby missed more playing time than usual.

For the first time this season, the two offensive linemen the Raiders selected in the draft took the field. Second round pick Jackson Powers-Johnson came in at right guard and third rounder DJ Glaze entered the game at right tackle.

JPJ came in late in the game, just to mix things up and give him some reps. Oddly he came in at right guard considering he had been lining up at left guard early on and Cody Whitehair has been lining up there in his absence.

Glaze came in early due to an injury to Thayer Munford that knocked him out of the game on just his second snap.

It was noted that during the game Maxx Crosby was coming out for some plays. Not something he is known for doing. It was because his high ankle sprain was bothering him.

In total Crosby missed 13 snaps. That’s a lot for him. He didn’t even miss that many snaps when he had his serious knee injury late last season. The only other time in the past three years Crosby was out of a game for more snaps than Sunday was the blowout win over the Chargers last year, when the Raiders had put the game away and his presence was no longer needed.

Offense
 Spec Tms
Player Pos Num Pct Num Pct
Cody Whitehair G 64 100% 3 10%
Andre James C 64 100% 3 10%
Kolton Miller T 64 100% 0 0%
DJ Glaze T 62 97% 3 10%
Davante Adams WR 61 95% 0 0%
Jakobi Meyers WR 59 92% 0 0%
Tre Tucker WR 52 81% 4 13%
Gardner Minshew II QB 51 80% 0 0%
Dylan Parham G 43 67% 3 10%
Brock Bowers TE 42 66% 0 0%
Michael Mayer TE 31 48% 3 10%
Alexander Mattison RB 28 44% 0 0%
Ameer Abdullah RB 22 34% 17 57%
Jackson Powers-Johnson G 21 33% 3 10%
Zamir White RB 14 22% 0 0%
Aidan O’Connell QB 13 20% 0 0%
DJ Turner WR 8 12% 26 87%
Harrison Bryant TE 3 5% 13 43%
Thayer Munford T 2 3% 0 0%
Defense
 Spec Tms
Player Pos Num Pct Num Pct
Tre’von Moehrig FS 74 100% 2 7%
Robert Spillane LB 74 100% 0 0%
Jack Jones CB 71 96% 0 0%
Jakorian Bennett CB 69 93% 0 0%
Maxx Crosby DE 61 82% 0 0%
Nate Hobbs CB 57 77% 0 0%
Christian Wilkins DT 56 76% 6 20%
Marcus Epps SS 54 73% 0 0%
Luke Masterson LB 52 70% 13 43%
John Jenkins DT 47 64% 7 23%
Adam Butler DT 43 58% 3 10%
Tyree Wilson DE 34 46% 0 0%
Isaiah Pola-Mao FS 27 36% 25 83%
Charles Snowden DE 26 35% 17 57%
Nesta Jade Silvera DT 26 35% 7 23%
Janarius Robinson DE 17 23% 6 20%
Jonah Laulu DT 11 15% 7 23%
Amari Gainer LB 10 14% 22 73%
Tommy Eichenberg LB 5 7% 20 67%
Special Teams
 Spec Tms
Player Pos Num Pct Num Pct
Kana’i Mauga LB 0 0% 24 80%
Christopher Smith SS 0 0% 21 70%
Amari Burney LB 0 0% 20 67%
Thomas Harper FS 0 0% 11 37%
AJ Cole III P 0 0% 8 27%
Jacob Bobenmoyer LS 0 0% 8 27%
Sam Webb CB 0 0% 8 27%
Daniel Carlson K 0 0% 7 23%
Darnay Holmes CB 0 0% 6 20%
Andrus Peat G 0 0% 3 1

Injury news: Maxx Crosby fighting high ankle sprain, Raiders defense flounders

Maxx Crosby says he’s fighting a high ankle sprain. Meanwhile Raiders defense looked lost.

One thing became apparent in Sunday’s loss to the Panthers and that was that the Raiders is not able to function at a high level if Maxx Crosby is not himself. He was obviously not right. And the Raiders got routed by the Carolina Panthers as a result.

No one really wondered if Crosby would play this week. He played through a knee injury last season that had him in the hospital two days before the game. That time he missed practice all week and was Doubtful for the game. This time he was limited all week and Questionable.

But it’s possible this time what he was dealing with was actually harder to fight through.

“It’s a high ankle,” Crosby said of his injury. “It’s shitty, but I’ll be good. I’ll be better.”

“It sucks. It’s unfortunate. I mean I hurt it literally the second to last play in Baltimore. Just part of the game, you know. Every time I go out there I’m going to try and be out there with my teammates. If I’m 100% or 50% it doesn’t affect if I’m going to go out there.”

Even a 50% Maxx Crosby is better than a lot of guys can do at 100%. But it’s possible that this defense can’t function at a high level with a 50% Maxx Crosby.

Every facet of this defense failed Sunday in the loss to the Panthers. They gave up chunks on the ground while Andy Dalton had a near perfect day through the air. Several times, enjoying lots of time to work.

The Raiders did have a couple sacks, but Crosby wasn’t involved in either one.

And when I say Crosby wasn’t involved, I don’t mean he just wasn’t the one who made the sack. I mean he wasn’t a factor at all in the sack. One was an unblocked blitz from Robert Spillane while the other was Christian Wilkins and Charles Snowden swarming on the right side to split the sack.

We’re talking about the AFC Defensive Player of the Week here. It’s highly unusual for Crosby not to be a factor to say the least.

It’s unusual for Crosby to come off the field at all. And he was on and off the field several times, which is a sure fire indication he was not right.

Without him, the defense was not the defense we had come to recognize over the past 12 games under Antonio Pierce.

“You can’t pinpoint one thing. A lot of things go on during a game. If you don’t play complementary football, you start slow, all those things don’t help, I know that.”

Antonio Pierce says some Raiders players made ‘business decisions’ in loss to Panthers

An emotional Antonio Pierce made a serious accusation about his Raiders players along with what sounded like a threat.

Post game after a loss can be an emotional time. And Antonio Pierce can be an emotional guy. He’s also an open and honest guy. It’s part of what his players love about him. If what he said after the Raiders ugly loss to the Panthers is more honesty than emotional reaction, there may be some players who have some explaining to do.

“There was definitely some individuals that made business decisions,” Pierce said, suggesting a lack of effort. “And we’ll make business decisions going forward as well.”

That sounds a lot like a threat or possibly just a signal that there will be a move made, either with regard to who starts or possibly who is even on the team.

Several Raiders players were asked in the locker room about what Pierce could have meant by this, but none either knew or would say if they knew what Pierce or to whom he could be referring.

Right off the top of your head, your mind goes to star players, banged up players, and those on the final year of their contracts. But it would probably be irresponsible to list off all the players that would fit those descriptions considering this is all just hypothetical and we really have no idea.

It’s also possible this is just a knee jerk reaction by a fiery coach who still has the mindset of a player. Undoubtedly he will be asked about it again tomorrow to see if he either stands by it or backs down from it.

Injury update: Raiders DT Christian Wilkins, DE Maxx Crosby expected to play vs Panthers

The Raiders will have they interior and edge pass rushing duo together vs Panthers

When your team’s two best players both show up on the injury report, it can be a bit concerning. When they are officially Questionable for the game, it’s even more concerning. That was the case with Maxx Crosby (ankle) and Christian Wilkins (knee) this week.

Head coach Antonio Pierce said on Friday that Crosby would be playing in the game. So, barring any setbacks, Maxx was playing. Not a big surprise considering his history with playing through injuries.

“He hasn’t missed any practice,” Pierce said of Crosby. “So, regardless of what I want to do, I’ve got to fight 98 and everything that he does. But the ultimate warrior. I mean, you see it with the stats this year, he hasn’t missed a snap, and I don’t expect him missing Sunday, either. I don’t expect him missing Sunday.”

That just left the question of whether Wilkins’s knee would be healthy enough for him to go. According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, he too will play Sunday.

https://twitter.com/JFowlerESPN/status/1837677379377860613

The Raiders have one of the league’s best defenses. That defense runs on its pass rush. Over the first two games, the two of them often set each other up for sacks and pressures.

“Just good chemistry,” Pierce said of Wilkins and Crosby. “And I think it’s an unselfish play by Christian, because there’s no sacks there, right? There’s not a lot of stats. We’re talking about Maxx Crosby, AFC [Defensive] Player of the Week. A lot of that’s coming because of what’s happening with Christian. Christian’s demanding too, right? He’s taking that guard and tackle, whatever it may be, and that’s freeing up Maxx winning these one-on-one opportunities. And Maxx is making the most out of it.”