Maxx Crosby was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week after last week’s performance against the Ravens, and if the voter’s get their heads out of the sand, Crosby is already making a case to be this year’s defensive player of the year.
The Baltimore game wasn’t one that particularly impressed Pro Football Focus, which is embarrassing, but anyone who watched the game saw an incredible performance from Crosby as a player, and also as a leader.
Crosby was unstoppable at times against the Ravens, but it was his impassioned pep talk to Garnder Minshew after a first half interception that made the headlines during and after the game.
“I’m going to keep [what I said] between us,” Crosby said this week on The Rush. “I said some things… I was just reminding him of who the f— he was. You know what I mean? It’s a tough sport. The NFL is probably one of the hardest professions in the world… and being a quarterback under that type of pressure, confidence is everything. That was my message to him. I’m not going to say exactly what I said, but it was just reminding him who the f— he is and we’re going to win this game.
“I got to see him in the weight room. We were both finishing our workout, and he just came up and gave me a big bro hug and that’s my guy,” Crosby continued. “We believe in him. We believe in him heavily and he’s done a great job… we’re all in.”
Minshew was asked about the exchange earlier in the week, and his account was generally in line with what Crosby said.
“It was awesome, man. He grabbed me and just said ‘Hey, we’ve got your back, dude. We need that Washington State Gardner. We need that,” Minshew said. I was like ‘Man, you’re right. Let me see if I can go whip that up real quick… That dude is a great leader,” Minshew continued. “He does it the right way, man, and couldn’t be more grateful to have him on our team.”
Looking back at the CBS broadcast, it’s a safe bet that some of the best stuff that was said between Crosby and Minshew has been left out on both accounts.
Minshew doesn’t appear to say much of anything, but he certainly responded on the field when it mattered most.
x: @raidersbeat
I am so proud of my raiders. So proud of our coach and the whole staff, for not panicking and showing great Raider poise in the win against Baltimore. I love how they didn’t turn on each other and play the blame game. They just kept working hard and staying together as a team. Now let’s get another W against Carolina.
Minster is our savior after one win. Let’s just wait and see.