Crosby Getting D-Line to Buy Into His Mindset
The Las Vegas Raiders’ defensive line got a significant boost this week.
On Monday, the Raiders signed superstar defensive tackle Christian Wilkins to a four-year, $110 million contract. Wilkins and Crosby were two of seven defensive linemen to play more than 850 snaps this season, according to The Athletic’s Nate Tice.
Both Crosby and Wilkins faced many double teams in 2023, and now offensive lines have to account for Wilkins on the interior and Crosby off the edge. Not to mention Malcolm Koonce and Tyree Wilson, two young players who have emerged.
What separates Crosby from those players, however, is his relentless pursuit of greatness. Crosby wants to get his defensive line teammates on the same page as him, mindset-wise.
Crosby joined The NFL Report with Steve Wyche, Brian Baldinger, and James Palmer to discuss how his offseason is going and how he and his teammates plan to attack the offseason heading into the 2024 season.
Maxx Crosby and the Las Vegas Raiders' defensive line are looking to be great in 2024.
Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports
“We have almost 10 D-Linemen in the building already. We’ve been training for over a month now together and getting after it, so yeah, we’re focused on being the best in the world and that’s what we plan on doing.”
Despite two major surgeries in the offseason, Crosby produced at a high level in 2023. He set career highs in multiple statistics, including total tackles, tackles for loss, and sacks. Crosby was a Defensive Player of the Year candidate and continued his run as one of the best defensive linemen in the league.
Wilkins joins the Raiders after another excellent season with the Miami Dolphins. The 28-year-old defensive tackle set a career-high in sacks in 2023 with nine. He comes to the Raiders after posting 355 total tackles, 43 tackles for loss, 50 quarterback hits, 19 passes defended, and 20.5 sacks.
The Raiders also expect to get a boost from Koonce, who had the best season of his career in 2023 with 43 total tackles and eight sacks.
Las Vegas will also hope to see continued growth from Wilson, who struggled for most of his rookie season but showed flashes of what the Raiders expected when they selected him with the No. 7 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
With four critical pieces on the Raiders’ defensive line, Crosby will lead the pack and hope to get them all into the same mindset he possesses daily. If he can, the Raiders’ line will be much improved.
The NFL Draft will be held in Detroit, Mich., on April 25-27, 2024. The Las Vegas Raiders currently hold the No. 13 overall pick.
Ensure you follow on X (Twitter) @HondoCarpenter and IG @HondoSr and never miss another breaking news story again. Sign up RIGHT HERE for our 100% FREE newsletter that comes thrice a week and delivers all our best stories.
Please let us know your thoughts when you like our Facebook page WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE.
