Maxx Crosby is clearly upset about the Raiders’ decision to bench him for the final two games of the regular season. He didn’t compete in Las Vegas’ 34–10 loss to the Giants on Sunday, and he won’t play in Week 18’s game vs. the Chiefs this Sunday.
So, how is Crosby truly feeling about this sticky situation with his team?
On Monday night, Crosby joined Jim Gray on the Let’s Go podcast to share his perspective on his football journey in general, seemingly commenting on the benching issue. The defensive end definitely has that anticipation of wanting to play every chance that he can, so when that opportunity is taken away from him, it’s going to frustrate him.
“When it comes to football, there’s certain things that I truly believe in,” he said. “And I feel like there’s core principles that you gotta live by, and there’s a certain way the game needs to be played. And there’s a certain approach that you have when you go into the field. And the way you look at it, from my perspective, is you play to win. You play for your teammates, you put everything you have into the game, no matter what it is. There’s gonna be bumps and bruises. You’re gonna be banged up. That is a part of the game and the nature of the beast.
“...I never wanna look back and say I wish I would’ve, or I should’ve, done this. I’m all in, and I’ve been all in since day one, and everybody that’s with me on a daily basis knows my approach to this game. They could say I might be on edge. Sometimes I might be. But at the end of the day, they know my intentions. And when you have real relationships and you lead by action instead of words, when you go out there and show the guys, this is how we do it, this is how you work, and you prove it every day, that holds a lot more weight than words. Yeah, I love the game, man. This is my whole life.”
Crosby’s future is still up in the air as he has yet to answer if he wants to remain in Las Vegas moving forward because of the rough two-win season and them shutting him down. Crosby did just sign a record extension for three years and $106.5 million this past offseason, so there’s a chance he will remain with the Raiders.
But, as Crosby said, he plays to win, and the Raiders definitely aren’t doing that. His motivation to win might be at an all-time high, so we’ll see where he plays next season.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Maxx Crosby Got Brutally Honest About Future After Raiders Shut Him Down.
