Bills' Pursuit of Maxx Crosby Trade Detailed in Revealing Report

It was previously reported this offseason that the Buffalo Bills made a run at acquiring Maxx Crosby via trade, and now we know why their pursuit came up short.

During a recent conversation with The Buffalo News, Bills president of football operations Brandon Beane detailed the back-and-forth between him and Las Vegas Raiders general manager John Spytek and the process Buffalo went through to try and land the five-time Pro Bowler.

In return for Crosby, the Raiders were searching for two first-round picks, which they initially accepted in a deal with the Baltimore Ravens before that trade ultimately fell through due to a failed physical. With that said, according to the article, it would have taken more than that for the Bills to get in on the action.

‘How the hell can I pull this off?’

Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby (98) in the tunnel against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field. | Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

For the Bills to acquire Crosby, it would have taken an additional second-round pick on top of the two first-rounders the Raiders were seeking. That was a cost Buffalo wasn't willing to pay.

Even when the Ravens ultimately backed out of the deal, Buffalo didn’t have what it took to swing what would have been a blockbuster move.

“Listen, if anything falls apart, my mind goes to, ‘How the hell can I pull this off?’” said Beane to The Buffalo News. “That’s the truth about anything. But when it happened, a lot of the league was like, ‘A lot of dollars are already committed.’ For me, could I have backed out of some deals? Yeah, but that’s not how I’m going to do business.”

He added, “That’s the only way we could have done something at that point is to back out of things. Even then, it would have been hard. Now, to do that, you’re going to screw some people out of some markets. I’m not going to do that.”

End of business

Beane had already agreed to a trade with the Chicago Bears that sent Buffalo’s 2026 second-round pick in exchange for wide receiver DJ Moore and a fifth-rounder. At that point, the Bills were out of luck. After the Moore deal, Buffalo’s draft capital took a hit, leaving the team without a second-round selection.

“We were also working on the DJ Moore thing and decided, you know what, this makes the most sense for us and let’s lock it in,” said Beane. “The trade with Maxx was not moving as fast, and I get it.

“They were trying to get as much for the player as they could, and at some point, you have to make a decision. You don’t want to be sitting there over the weekend, and DJ’s been traded, and you still don’t have enough ammo or what makes wise sense, from my seat, for what you have to give up to get [Crosby].”

In the end, the Bills moved on from their chase of a trade for Crosby and settled on free-agent Bradley Chubb to improve their pass rush. And while much of the fan base was pleased with the signing, something tells me Bills Mafia would have much rather preferred Crosby in the fold for the 2026 season.

That being said, two first-round picks and a second-rounder would have been too much for the Bills to pay and it was wise for them to move on and pursue other opportunities.