{"id":680870,"date":"2026-01-16T03:43:15","date_gmt":"2026-01-16T03:43:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/680870\/"},"modified":"2026-01-16T03:43:15","modified_gmt":"2026-01-16T03:43:15","slug":"bears-blockbuster-trade-pitch-lands-raiders-de-maxx-crosby","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/680870\/","title":{"rendered":"Bears Blockbuster Trade Pitch Lands Raiders DE Maxx Crosby"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGetty\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Head coach Ben Johnson of the Chicago Bears.<\/p>\n

The Chicago Bears<\/a> are unquestionably an offensive team, and their defense is lacking for one unmistakable reason.<\/p>\n

Chicago will take on the Los Angeles Rams<\/a> at Soldier Field on Sunday, January 18 in the Divisional Round of the NFC playoffs. There are several reasons the Bears should fear the Rams\u2019 No. 1 offense<\/a> heading into the weekend, but the biggest is that Chicago\u2019s defense has shown a minimal capacity for pressuring opposing quarterbacks.<\/p>\n

And the Rams\u2019 QB happens to be MVP candidate Matthew Stafford<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Bears can\u2019t do anything about that now, but the pass-rusher position is liable to be the team\u2019s top priority whenever its offseason begins. That probably means Chicago will draft the best edge-rusher available whenever the franchise ends up picking in the first round, which will be no earlier than No. 25<\/a> after winning its first playoff game.<\/p>\n

Options like Trey Hendrickson<\/a> and Jaelan Phillips<\/a> will be there in free agency. But the superior path is arguably to trade with the Las Vegas Raiders<\/a> for Maxx Crosby<\/a> (28), who is younger than Hendrickson (31) and who has been healthier and more productive than Phillips (26).<\/p>\n

The move is likely to cost the Bears two first-round picks in 2026 and 2027, but adding a healthy and hungry Crosby could prove the piece that puts the defense on equal footing with a much-improved offense and sets Chicago up as legitimate Super Bowl contenders for multiple years to come.<\/p>\n

Bears May Have to Overpay Slightly to Acquire Maxx Crosby From Raiders in Trade\"Maxx<\/p>\n

GettyEdge-rusher Maxx Crosby of the Las Vegas Raiders.<\/p>\n

Bill Barnwell of ESPN wrote in July 2025 that Crosby was worth one first-round pick and change, but asserted that he fell short of two first-rounders in value.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe 27-year-old missed five games [in the 2024] season, but before that point, he had stayed healthy while enduring the largest snap share of any other defender,\u201d Barnwell wrote<\/a>. \u201cHe ranks 14th in the league in pass rush win rate and 11th in pressure rate over the past three seasons, most of which has come without a secondary rusher to give opposing lines any pause.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCrosby is earning nearly $36 million per season on his new deal, which makes it tough to generate the sort of surplus value needed to land multiple first-round picks,\u201d Barnwell continued. \u201cThere aren\u2019t many better defensive players in the league right now, though.\u201d<\/p>\n

Crosby is a five-time consecutive Pro Bowler, with two second-team All-Pro selections on his resum\u00e9 across seven seasons. He recently inked a three-year extension worth $106.5 million<\/a> in total that keeps him under contract through 2029.<\/p>\n

He finished finished this season with 28 tackles for loss<\/a>, second in the NFL<\/a> behind only Myles Garrett<\/a> of the Cleveland Browns<\/a>, as well as 10 sacks in 15 games played.<\/p>\n

Maxx Crosby Potentially Open to Trade for First Time in NFL Career\"Maxx<\/p>\n

GettyLas Vegas Raiders pass-rusher Maxx Crosby.<\/p>\n

The two outings Crosby missed came in the last two weeks of the season, as the Raiders sat him down due to a meniscus injury in his knee. The team\u2019s choice incensed Crosby, who left the facility in anger after the Raiders informed him that they had made the decision on his behalf.<\/p>\n

Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated reported on December 29 that Crosby, who has always been adamant about remaining with the Raiders organization and never asking for a trade, may well now be open to it for the first time in his career.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy sense is this will likely lead Crosby to consider all of his options,\u201d Breer wrote<\/a>. \u201cHe\u2019ll be 29 by the start of next season and has a lot of mileage on his body after finishing each of the past three seasons hurt. His contract is tradeable, and the Raiders still look like they\u2019re a couple of good offseasons away from contending.\u201d<\/p>\n

The team has since fired head coach Pete Carroll<\/a> after one season, in which Las Vegas finished tied for the worst record in the league at 3-14 and earned the No. 1 pick in the upcoming draft.<\/p>\n

The Raiders are likely to select Indiana quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza<\/a> with that pick, which signals the start of a rebuild.<\/p>\n

Two first-round picks may be a bit high of an asking price for Crosby, but Chicago will likely select late in the opening round the next two years, and both teams have the incentive to make the move.<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tMax Dible<\/a> covers the NFL, NBA and MLB for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, Chicago Bears and Cleveland Browns. He covered local and statewide news as a reporter for West Hawaii Today and served as news director for BigIslandNow.com and Pacific Media Group’s family of Big Island radio stations before joining Heavy. More about Max Dible<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tMore Heavy on Bears\n\t\t<\/p>\n

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