The Chicago Bears‘ Maxx Crosby-trade pipe dreams seem to have come to a lull, if not a full stoppage after it was reported that the Las Vegas Raiders plan for the two-time All-Pro to play in Sin City in 2026.
It was never quite clear, beyond obscure and varying reports, exactly how close the Bears actually got to trading for the 28-year old prior to the now-nixed move to the Baltimore Ravens.
However, speaking on Thursday general manager Ryan Poles shared some insight as to the Bears’ moves this offseason in the pursuit of one of the best edge rushes in the game, via ESPN’s Courtney Cronin.
“Ryan Poles confirms that the Bears were interested in trading for Maxx Crosby: “We were involved. We checked into it. We looked to see if it made sense. Had some dialogue. I’ll leave it at that.” Cronin wrote in a post on X.
Bears Fans Have Faced a Maxx Crosby Rollercoaster
The Raiders’ asking price was two first round selections, something that the Ravens originally agreed to give up in the form of the 14th overall pick in 2026 and their first rounder in 2027.
It is quite possible that Chicago offered a similar deal, but given that they pick 11 spots after Baltimore (#25), the Bears would have had to also offer their second round pick (#57) and their fourth round pick (#129) in order to match the Ravens’ offer.
The Chicago Bears fanbase have had to weather the ups and downs of the Maxx Crosby saga over the past week or so. First he was available and a possible target for the Bears, particularly after the team moved D.J. Moore to the Buffalo Bills in exchange for a second round draft pick in 2026, which also freed up significant cap space.
Then Crosby was moved to Baltimore, before the trade was cancelled due to a failed medical. After that, the hype re-surfaced for a potential trade prior to Vegas essentially shutting down the idea of moving the Eastern Michigan alum – at least for the time being.
Is there Still Hope For the Bears to Acquire Crosby?
Certainly the likelihood of Crosby ending up a Bear – or indeed playing on any team not named the Raiders – has been pretty vehemently diminished since Russini’s report.
However, it is unlikely that one failed trade – especially given that Vegas had already enacted their free agency strategy aimed at a post-Crosby team – would have totally changed the team’s outlook on the situation moving forward.
Raiders GM John Spytek could be playing hardball and waiting for a team to feel the pressure and get desperate enough to offer a similar – or perhaps even better haul than what Baltimore offered last week.
And if Crosby doesn’t get moved, the team should still have enough cap space to cover the cost of their high-priced incoming free agents such as center Tyler Linderbaum.
The question is, even if Crosby does get put back on the trade market, will Poles be willing to give up what Spytek and co desire in order to obtain him?
Bears GM Ryan Poles Gets Honest About Chicago’s Maxx Crosby Interest