He’s the one Raiders player who could lead a Sunday upset of the Chiefs
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Maxx Crosby must wreck Kansas City's offense at Arrowhead to enable upset.
- Crosby pressure frees teammates, creating sack and turnover opportunities.
- Raiders' lone path to victory requires Crosby to replicate high-impact plays.
If the 12-point underdog Las Vegas Raiders somehow upset the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday in Week 7 at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium, defensive end Maxx Crosby will have wrecked the game.
Given the trends and the matchups, it is the only plausible way.
The Raiders’ last win against the Chiefs was a memorable one — Kansas City’s final loss of the 2023 season on Christmas Day. Crosby generated seven pressures win that game, and the extra attention devoted to him freed up counterpart Malcolm Koonce to notch three sacks in a stunning 20-14 victory.
Crosby’s impact also led to a viral moment with Patrick Mahomes the year prior on “Monday Night Football,” when he logged two early sacks and helped the Raiders jump out to a 17-0 lead.
Kansas City rallied, and in the third quarter, Mahomes threw his third of four touchdown passes to Travis Kelce, giving the Chiefs a 24-20 lead in an eventual 30-29 win. Netflix mics famously caught Mahomes telling Crosby that he “woke up the wrong mother you-know-what.”
On the field, their relationship is as intense as it gets. Off the field, it’s all love.
“It’s a ton of respect,” Mahomes said this week. “When I talk to him outside of football, it’s like we’re friends, and you wouldn’t even see what happens on the football field, but he’s the type of competitor like me. When you get on that football field, it’s whatever it takes to win and you’re going to leave everything on the football field, and I have a ton of respect for that.
“Those are the guys that you want on your team because they play with that mentality and he’s trying to do that and build that culture there. I know when we step across that line and you get on that football field, it’s going to take your best effort to find a way to go against that guy.”
Over the past three games, the Chiefs have scored 95 points and piled up more than 1,200 yards of offense — and they’re optimistic that output can rise even higher with star receiver Rashee Rice back in the fold. But despite the Raiders’ slow start, Crosby remains the one player capable of disrupting that surge, near single-handedly.
“He’s a heck of a competitor, and he’s 100 miles an hour every play,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said of Crosby. “I’m sure he’s that way in practice (laughing). He just goes and goes. He and Patrick are friends, actually, and they just compete against each other. And that’s the beauty of this sport, you have an opportunity to do that. He’ll be there for sure.”
During the offseason, Kansas City offensive coordinator Matt Nagy recalled being asked by the Kelce brothers, on their “New Heights” podcast, who the league’s toughest defensive player was.
His answer? You guessed it.
“He goes 100% of the time, all the time, and it’s relentless,” Nagy said of Crosby, echoing Reid. “He’s a game-changer — he can affect the game. Just a ton of respect. You’ve got to know where he’s at on every play.”
Crosby typically lines up on the left edge — this season, it’s been 89% of the time. That pits him against the right side of the protection, led by tackle Jawaan Taylor.
“They’ve had some battles now, prior to Kansas City (in Jacksonville), before Jawaan was here,” Nagy said. “They’ve gone at it. It’ll be a test. I have a ton of confidence in JT, and I know he respects the heck out of Maxx and so it’s a good battle.”
Crosby is coming off an outing against the Tennessee Titans in which he registered two of his four sacks on the season.
A repeat performance Sunday is Raiders’ only real path to victory.
