Graney: Maxx Crosby playing at elite level despite little help
He is a shining light amid some serious darkness right now, an exception to the rule of how the Raiders defense has performed. Maxx Crosby is an edge rusher living up to his Pro Bowl status.
No matter how much attention opponents are paying him.
Crosby and the Raiders entertain the Colts on Sunday at Allegiant Stadium, the fourth-year player more than doing his part this season as a member of a struggling defense.
It’s really no different than last season, and yet perhaps magnified a tad more as the Raiders sit at 2-6 and grapple to stop most folks. Crosby is getting chipped and double-teamed like nobody’s business. He’s drawing attention like that of moths to fire.
“That’s the nature of the beast,” Raiders coach Josh McDaniels said. “When you’re a productive player in this league, most coaches and teams will put a little bit more attention into trying to limit your production if they can. Maxx has had a great attitude the entire year about that.
“That isn’t going to deter him in terms of his attitude or effort to do his job well and to make plays, and I think he has. He’s really done a good job.”
High rankings
Consider: Crosby is ranked as the NFL’s second-best edge rusher behind Myles Garrett of the Browns by Pro Football Focus. Crosby has a team-high six sacks, a pressure rank of 14th with 32 and sits 20th in quarterback hits with 16.
He is also rated the best edge player against the run, a fact McDaniels says gets lost in the narrative of Crosby’s skills rushing a quarterback.
More: With five tackles against the Colts, Crosby would have 52 this season, the most through nine games as any defensive lineman in Raiders history.
It was Crosby who requested of McDaniels in training camp that he be double-teamed, that as much pressure as the coach could provide was sent his way. He wanted to prepare as best as possible for what would assuredly occur during the season.
“I want to be the best player I can possibly be,” Crosby said. “I don’t want one-on-one every day. I want it to be realistic and how it’s going to be in a game. I appreciate Josh for that. Make it as hard on me as he can.”
He is carving out another memorable season with little help from others up front, the Raiders totaling three sacks next to Crosby’s six. It has been written and talked about to death, the fact opposite edge rusher Chandler Jones hasn’t come close to what a three-year contract for $51 million suggested his production should be.
Which makes this part all the more disappointing: As McDaniels said, when opponents assign (at least) two bodies to a player such as Crosby, it should allow opportunities for others to make plays — be it schematically or via one’s individual skill.
But that’s not happening. The Raiders don’t have enough players executing. They’re ranked 28th in total defense and 31st in red zone defense.
Pointing fingers
You can reach 2-6 all sorts of different ways, and the Raiders have certainly shown a level of ineptness across the board. But none more so than on the defensive side.
“You can point a finger anywhere you want,” Crosby said. “When you lose games, everyone is trying to find somebody to blame. That’s just part of the game. At the end of the day, it’s a team sport.
“We haven’t been doing a good enough job on either side (of the ball). We know that. It’s about playing four quarters and maybe more. We have to stay locked in and on the same page. We’re working toward that.”
He’s locked in, for sure.
It’s on others to join him on that page. There’s plenty of space.
Ed Graney is a Sigma Delta Chi Award winner for sports column writing and can be reached at egraney@reviewjournal.com. He can be heard on “The Press Box,” ESPN Radio 100.9 FM and 1100 AM, from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. Monday through Friday. Follow @edgraney on Twitter.