Morning Sports Update
“Now could be the time to make a splash transfer, and dealing for Crosby would qualify.”
Maxx Crosby and the Patriots: Having reached the Tremendous Bowl within the first season of the Mike Vrabel period solely to fall to the Seahawks, your entire premise of the Patriots‘ offseason will seemingly be outlined by what measures New England’s entrance workplace takes to go one step additional.
Within the spirit of that objective, one identify has already began to face out as a possible Patriots commerce goal: Maxx Crosby.
The 28-year-old defensive finish has been a persistently nice pass-rusher in his seven NFL seasons. Throughout that point, Crosby has notched 69.5 sacks and has established himself as one of many league’s high defensive forces. Would the Raiders commerce him?
“I believe over 1 / 4 of the league has already kind of sniffed round the opportunity of, ‘May we make a commerce for Maxx Crosby.’ I do assume there are groups on the market, together with the 2 that have been within the Tremendous Bowl, that may have an curiosity at bringing in Maxx Crosby,” NFL insider Albert Breer said on “The Breer Report.”
“Would Tom Brady even entertain the thought of buying and selling him to the Patriots?” Breer theorized. “I believe Crosby would have a minimum of some need, doubtlessly, to play for Mike Vrabel. He is aware of Josh McDaniels, the offensive coordinator there, who wouldn’t be teaching him instantly however was with him in Vegas.”
Breer famous that the Patriots’ Tremendous Bowl opponents, the Seahawks, “would additionally make sense.”
The Patriots’ particular wage cap state of affairs is one other issue that lends to the thought of a Crosby deal. Per New England beat reporter Doug Kyed of The Boston Herald, “Now could be the time to make a splash transfer, and dealing for Crosby would qualify.”
“The Tremendous Bowl additionally confirmed {that a} path to profitable all of it can come from producing unrelenting strain that Seattle introduced in opposition to Patriots quarterback Drake Maye,” wrote Kyed. “A participant like Crosby, paired with [Milton] Williams, [Christian] Barmore, [Harold] Landry, [Elijah] Ponder and probably [K’Lavon] Chaisson, can deliver that game-changing strain from all angles alongside the entrance seven.”
Drake Maye stays on his (cheaper) rookie contract, permitting the Patriots to doubtlessly make investments more cash on different place. Leveraging the cap with a gifted younger quarterback on a extra reasonably priced contract is a technique that different groups (together with the 2013 Seahawks) used with nice impact in Tremendous Bowl runs.
On high of every thing else, Crosby may find yourself in New England due to Vrabel. In response to Dianna Russini of The Athletic, Crosby told her that “he needs to play for Mike Vrabel.”
In fact, a lot of the (speculative) commerce dialogue of Crosby implies that the participant himself needs a Raiders exit (one thing that he has disputed). And Raiders’ management — most lately the crew’s newly-appointed head coach, Klint Kubiak — have made it clear they need him to remain.
The worth may show too steep for a Patriots crew that’s concurrently making an attempt so as to add depth in different positions.
“The Patriots may purchase Crosby with the intent that he pushes them excessive, however I’m guessing coach Mike Vrabel & Co. are extra sensible about what they want in 2026 and add younger expertise to their core,” wrote ESPN’s Invoice Barnwell in a latest overview of the Crosby dialogue.
But when Las Vegas finally decides to deal the gifted defensive finish, analysts appear to agree that New England might be among the many high bidders.
Trivia: Who’s the one participant to achieve a triple-digit variety of profession sacks taking part in for the Patriots?
(Reply on the backside).
Trace: He was chosen by New England as a second-round pick of Iowa.
Scores and schedules:
The Celtics return from the NBA All-Star break on Thursday on the highway in opposition to the Warriors at 10 p.m.
The Bruins stay on an Olympics break till Feb. 26.
On the Olympics, the U.S. males’s hockey crew will play within the quarterfinals on Wednesday, whereas the ladies will face Canada within the gold medal sport on Thursday.
This Saturday, the Revolution start the 2026 MLS common season at Nashville with the kickoff set for 8:30 p.m.
Extra from Boston.com:
Jayson Tatum’s highway to restoration: The Celtics star launched a brief video about his journey again to the courtroom following the 2025 damage.
Definitely worth the wait: At 41, and having collected bronze and silver medals on the 2010, 2014, 2018, and 2022 Olympics in bobsledding, Elana Meyers Taylor lastly broke by on the 2026 Winter Video games with a gold. The legendary four-time World Champion was understandably elated when her victory was secured.
On at the present time: In 1977, the Celtics outlasted the Kings 126-125 in time beyond regulation. Dave Cowens (seen under in a randomly humorous AP picture), led Boston with 33 factors, 22 rebounds, and 7 assists.
Day by day spotlight: From over the weekend, the newly-installed twin moguls competitors on the Winter Olympics offered a fully electrical sequence by which eventual silver medalist Ikuma Horishima of Japan crossed the end line first after snowboarding backwards, having barely recovered from a nearly-out-of-control again flip.
Trivia reply: Andre Tippett
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