Tom Brady Was Never Letting Patriots Land Maxx Crosby

New England never had a shot at landing Maxx Crosby from the Las Vegas Raiders.

Nov 30, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby (98) reacts during the second half at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

The Maxx Crosby saga is now over after the Las Vegas Raiders came to an agreement with the Baltimore Ravens for a return of two first-round draft picks.

Most of the league had reportedly checked in with general manager John Spytek and company about acquiring Crosby, but ultimately, the Ravens were willing to give in to the high asking price set by the Raiders.

While most of the league was thought to be in on Crosby at some point, it was never really clear how serious the New England Patriots were about making a move for him. But that doesn't seem to matter at this point, and it was never going to happen, according to NFL insider Jeremy Fowler, who reported that Tom Brady was never going to send Crosby to his former teammate Mike Vrabel.

Brady Stiffs Vrabel

"One person involved in the trade made an interesting point about the Patriots' chances at Crosby: 'No way Tom [Brady] was sending Maxx to [Mike] Vrabel.'"

Aug 17, 2019; Nashville, TN, USA; New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (12) hugs Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images | Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images

Vrabel and Brady have a great relationship going back to their days as teammates and winning Lombardi trophies with the Pats, but when it comes to competing against one another, Brady was undoubtedly not going to let his former team or teammate interfere with what he was doing, no matter what they were going to offer.

That's just who Brady is, and Pats fans know that more than anyone. While it's clear that Brady, who is now a minority owner of the Raiders, isn't going to do his former team any favors, actively working against them is not something that many had seen coming.

The Patriots didn't necessarily need to go out and get Crosby, and they never became a clear landing spot leading up to Crosby's eventual trade, despite the fact that he would be an immediate upgrade.

New England has plenty of holes to fill elsewhere, so it wouldn't have made sense for them to use draft capital at a position of lesser need. With free agency and the NFL Draft still coming down the funnel, they can upgrade or get depth at edge rusher, or decide to use their cap space and capital elsewhere to make sure what happened in Super Bowl LX doesn't show back up.

Crosby will now head to the AFC North, where there is an abundance of elite pass rushers. And while the Patriots can be upset with Brady and his antics, the person who should be most concerned with Crosby heading to Baltimore is Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, who will have to face Crosby, Myles Garrett, and TJ Watt twice a year.

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