The Detroit Lions have a narrow path to pairing Maxx Crosby with Aidan Hutchinson and creating what would be perhaps the most devastating edge-rushing duo in the NFL, but the team got some good news on that front the day following the Super Bowl.
Jason La Canfora of SportsBoom reported on Monday, February 9 that Crosby has informed both the Las Vegas Raiders and several other teams around the league that he has no intention of playing another down for the franchise after spending the first seven years of his career in silver and black.
“Crosby’s representatives have begun informing high-ranking officials from other NFL teams that the All Pro, livid over being asked to sit out the end of the regular season despite believing he was healthy enough to play, will never suit up for the Raiders again and is intent on playing elsewhere in 2026,” La Canfora wrote.
Maxx Crosby Will Be Incredibly Expensive on Front, Back Ends of Trade With Lions
GettyDefensive end Maxx Crosby of the Las Vegas Raiders.
Crosby, 28, is under contract four more seasons and remains one of the best pass-rushers in football.
But the Raiders are rebuilding and poised to select quarterback Fernando Mendoza with the No. 1 pick in April’s draft. The demand league-wide for Crosby, combined with his displeasure regarding the franchise and the timeline for competitiveness in Las Vegas renders a trade the most sensible outcome.
ESPN’s Bill Barnwell wrote last summer that Crosby was worth a first-round pick and change, though two first-round picks and more could be the ceiling for a player of his caliber, if only because such talent is so rarely available.
Jay Glazer of Fox Sports predicted during Super Bowl week that Crosby would never return to Las Vegas and that he would go for more than Micah Parsons did in the Dallas Cowboys/Green Bay Packers trade, which sent two firsts and defensive tackle Kenny Clark to the NFC East in return for Parsons.
Aidan Hutchinson Weighed in on Maxx Crosby Acquisition
GettyDefensive end Aidan Hutchinson of the Detroit Lions.
Detroit is still in a championship window, even despite a regression in 2025 that saw the two-time reigning NFC North champs post a 9-8 record and miss the playoffs.
The issue is with the number of high-caliber players already on the roster who are up for extensions this offseason, even if not all of them will get their money this spring.
Running back Jahmyr Gibbs, linebacker Jack Campbell, tight end Sam LaPorta and safety Brian Branch are all on the docket and all likely to earn contracts in the highest financial echelons of their respective positions.
And as the Lions’ core group gets more expensive, quality draft picks that help the team acquire young and healthy talent on relatively inexpensive contracts become all the more important.
Thus, bringing in Crosby’s $106.5 million extension and sending out the 17th pick in this year’s draft, and presumably Detroit’s first-rounder in 2027 along with another valuable player or draft asset of some kind, might simply render the cost too steep.
“It sounds right,” Hutchinson told Kay Adams of playing with Crosby during an interview over Super Bowl week. “I was hearing some rumblings about it. In the event that it did happen, that would be so dangerous.”
“The likelihood of him coming to Detroit is high? No, just given with the amount of guys that they have to pay in the building that are already there,” Hutchinson continued.
While the likelihood may not be high, the opportunity absolutely exists for the Lions if they decide to go all-in this offseason.
Lions Get Vital Opening in Maxx Crosby Trade Sweepstakes