Count ESPN insider Jeremy Fowler among those who have visions of Maxx Crosby in a Chicago Bears uniform. After all, he did just draw up a mock trade scenario in which the Bears shipped DJ Moore, this year’s first-round pick, and next year’s third for the dynamic Las Vegas Raiders pass rusher.
Such a deal, Fowler wrote, would be “beneficial” for all parties involved, putting Crosby on a team with real championship aspirations and Moore on a team with a No. 1 pick at quarterback in Francisco Mendoza and a hot offensive mind in Klint Kubiak.
But it takes two to make a thing go right. And the Raiders (publicly, at least) aren’t giving up on keeping their talented defensive star, says Vegas general manager John Spytek.
“Maxx is an elite player, and I’ve been very up-front from the start when I got here that we’re in the business of having really good players on the team. And we need a lot more of them,” Spytek told reporters during this podium session at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis.
Long story short: Spytek wants everyone to know he expects Crosby to remain a Las Vegas Raider in the 2026 season.
Whether or not he’ll actually hold onto Crosby with a rebuilding squad and a young quarterback about to take over as a potential face of the franchise is another matter.
Spytek, of course, has no reason to formally put Crosby on the trade block, especially amid reports that Vegas wants at least two first-round picks for Crosby as a starting point. He’s not on an expiring deal, and he’s a franchise building block-type player himself. The moment he officially goes from simply listening to calls to telling the media he’s actively trying to offload Crosby, his leverage dies. So keep that in mind.
That said, the real dirt at the NFL Combine doesn’t go down on the field with the televised drills and measurements. It’s the conversations happening in the team booths, in the hallways and hotel rooms, or over dinner at one of the 75 steakhouses in downtown Indy. (I’m going to Fogo de Chao tomorrow with the SB Nation squad. Pray for me.) And given the Bears’ notable history of making deals post-Combine, there’s almost no way Ryan Poles hasn’t already/isn’t planning to chat with Spytek about the framework of a deal that works for both sides.
After all, Chicago is one of the few teams that can offer what the Raiders need: a productive pass catcher for their young quarterback, plus draft capital. And adding Crosby would immediately solve the Bears’ biggest roster problem, put the team in the upper echelon of contenders, and clear the way for the young receiving corps of Rome Odunze, Colston Loveland, and Luther Burden III to take off without Moore cutting into their snaps.
So whatever Spytek says publicly, Crosby is not at all off the table. The question is whether or not that means the Bears are willing to go all-in to get him or not.