{"id":846787,"date":"2026-04-01T09:43:30","date_gmt":"2026-04-01T09:43:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/846787\/"},"modified":"2026-04-01T09:43:30","modified_gmt":"2026-04-01T09:43:30","slug":"las-vegas-raiders-gm-john-spytek-coach-klint-kubiak-address-maxx-crosby-trade-fallout-at-nfl-meetings","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/846787\/","title":{"rendered":"Las Vegas Raiders GM John Spytek, Coach Klint Kubiak Address Maxx Crosby Trade Fallout at NFL Meetings"},"content":{"rendered":"

For the first time since the failed Maxx Crosby trade<\/a>, Las Vegas Raiders general manager John Spytek and head coach Klint Kubiak addressed the fallout publicly \u2014 and both sounded like men who came out the other side just fine.<\/p>\n

At the NFL\u2019s annual league meetings<\/a> in Phoenix this week, the two spoke candidly about the five-time Pro Bowl defensive end and what the chaotic sequence of events at the start of free agency ultimately meant for the franchise.<\/p>\n

Las Vegas Raiders GM gets an \u2018elite\u2019 piece during free agency<\/p>\n

\"NFL:Kirby Lee-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

Earlier this month, ESPN\u2019s Adam Schefter reported on March 6 that a trade was in place sending Crosby to the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for two first-round draft picks. The deal required the new league year to begin on March 11 before it could be made official. But before that could happen, Baltimore backed out \u2014 citing concerns about Crosby\u2019s surgically repaired knee \u2014 and the pass rusher returned to the Silver and Black.<\/p>\n

The timing of that reversal, Spytek said, didn\u2019t disrupt the team\u2019s offseason plan as much as it might seem.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust from the timing of it, it really didn\u2019t,\u201d Spytek said. \u201cWe did what we did on Monday, and that was Tuesday when it all happened. We had a lot of cap space and a lot of cash made available to us from Mark [Davis] and the ownership group to be aggressive and build the team the best way possible. I\u2019ll echo what Klint said \u2014 it was like we got another elite defensive end in free agency the way it worked out.\u201d<\/p>\n

Those signings \u2014 most notably center Tyler Linderbaum and edge rusher Kwity Paye \u2014 came during the legal tampering window, just before the Ravens pulled the plug.<\/p>\n

The evolution of a General Manager<\/p>\n

\"NFL:Kirby Lee-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

Crosby has watched a parade of general managers and head coaches cycle through the organization since being drafted in 2019. Spytek, who has worked to build trust with his star player from the start, said the communication between them has never stopped.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve had many great conversations with Maxx from the start of my tenure here, and we had many throughout the season,\u201d Spytek said. \u201cWe had one right at the end of the season, which everyone knows about. We talked about it in the months leading up to the deal. Maxx and I have continued to have great conversations since then. I know he and Klint have had great conversations, too. We just try to tell each other the truth and not have a lot of mystery or unknowns. Maxx, Klint and I will continue to operate that way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Spytek also spoke about the weight of those difficult roster decisions \u2014 the ones that affect players beyond the football field.<\/p>\n

\u201cThose are all challenging conversations,\u201d Spytek said. \u201cI try to sit in that moment with that person and explain the reasons why we\u2019re doing it, and try to be as honest and forthright as I can. To me, they\u2019re all deep personal conversations because you know how deeply it affects that person. I don\u2019t view them as just a player. This is altering their life.\u201d<\/p>\n

Also read: Mark Davis Isn\u2019t Selling the Raiders So Stop Acting Like He Is<\/a><\/p>\n

Kubiak: \u201cOur team just got better\u201d<\/p>\n

\"NFL:Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

Kubiak came to Las Vegas after helping Seattle win the Super Bowl last month, which left him a compressed timeline to assemble his coaching staff \u2014 all while watching this trade saga unfold in real time.<\/p>\n

He didn\u2019t hide how he felt when Spytek told him the deal was dead.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnytime there\u2019s a trade, you always know it could go down that way,\u201d Kubiak said. \u201cOnce it happened, I was really excited. When Spy came and talked to me about it, we sat down and my first thing was a smile. \u2018Oh, we have Maxx back. You kidding me? That\u2019s great.\u2019 Our team just got better.\u201d<\/p>\n

With Paye signed, Malcolm Koonce retained, and Tyree Wilson still in the fold, Las Vegas enters 2026 with legitimate depth along the defensive line. Crosby\u2019s return only strengthens what was already shaping up as a priority area.<\/p>\n

The one remaining question is whether Crosby will be on a snap count when the regular season opens. He underwent meniscus surgery in January and is not expected to be fully cleared until this summer.<\/p>\n

\u201cThose are things we have to work through,\u201d Kubiak said. \u201cWe\u2019ve got to get him healthy enough to practice. I know he\u2019s going to put himself in great position to do that, and there probably will be a conversation about that as we go. Taking the baby steps right now.\u201d<\/p>\n

The coach didn\u2019t seem worried about the timeline. He\u2019s seen how Crosby works.<\/p>\n

\u201cMaxx is our guy. He\u2019s the leader on defense.\u201d<\/p>\n

Also read: Las Vegas Raiders: 5 Second Round Pick Options for GM John Spytek<\/a><\/p>\n

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

\t\tBreven Honda received his bachelor\u2019s in journalism from San Diego State in May 2021. During his time at SDSU, … More about Breven Honda<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"For the first time since the failed Maxx Crosby trade, Las Vegas Raiders general manager John Spytek and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":846788,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2065],"tags":[7,8357,1744,393,2455,2454,6563,6,525],"class_list":{"0":"post-846787","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-las-vegas-raiders","8":"tag-football","9":"tag-klint-kubiak","10":"tag-las-vegas","11":"tag-las-vegas-raiders","12":"tag-lasvegas","13":"tag-lasvegasraiders","14":"tag-maxx-crosby","15":"tag-nfl","16":"tag-raiders"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116328808716110111","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/846787","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=846787"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/846787\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/846788"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=846787"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=846787"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=846787"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}