NFL insider spills the beans on what it would take for Bucs to land Maxx Crosby in a trade
Any trade package for the former All-Pro would likely surpass the Micah Parsons terms.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have plenty to fix on the defensive side of the ball after a second-half collapse in 2025 that saw them miss the playoffs for the first time since 2019.
One of the main culprits is the lack of a steady pass rush, particularly from their edge players. Free agent signee Haason Reddick missed four games and generated just 2.5 sacks and six tackles for loss across 13 games. Yaya Diaby had a respectable seven sacks and 13 tackles for loss, but that’s still not enough. Chris Braswell might as well be on a milk carton through two seasons, with just 2.5 sacks in a reserve role across 34 games.
Naturally, talk among fans and some pundits has turned to finding an established and dominant edge rusher to help immediately, and Raiders DE Maxx Crosby has been a name mentioned. It’s no secret that Crosby is unhappy and looking to get out of Las Vegas.
So, what would it take to potentially obtain Crosby in a trade? According to FOX NFL insider Jay Glazer, it would cost a team even more than what Green Bay gave up for Micah Parsons.
NFL insider Jay Glazer says price that the Bucs (or anyone else) would have to pay for Maxx Crosby would be more than in the Micah Parsons trade
“Probably more than Micah (Parsons),” Glazer said. “So, the day it happened, no less than twenty teams called me and asked ‘dude, is this real? Can we get him? What’s it for?’ I’m like, ‘we’re not there yet, but yes, it’s real.’”
Glazer also said that he thinks a trade for Crosby would likely happen before the NFL Draft in April.
As a refresher, Parsons was shipped by the Dallas Cowboys to the Green Bay Packers back in August after failing to come to an agreement with the team on a contract extension. The Packers sent three-time Pro Bowl defender Kenny Clark along with their 2026 and 2027 first-round picks for Parsons, who they immediately signed to a four-year, $188 million contract extension.
That’s a very tough price tag to swallow if you’re Jason Licht. Crosby is one of the best edge rushers in the game, but he’ll be 29 when the 2026 season starts and has missed seven games over the last two years. His top season came in 2023, when he led the NFL in tackles for loss (23) and notched 14.5 sacks on the way to second-team All-Pro honors.
The other issue, of course, is cost. The Bucs are currently projected to have around $18.3 million in effective cap space for 2026. Crosby is set to earn a base salary of $30 million in 2026, with his 2027 base salary of $29 million vesting to fully guaranteed if he’s on the roster on the third day of the league year of 2026, per Over The Cap.
Re-signing Mike Evans is still in play, and the team still desperately needs to find help at linebacker. Given the high price tag on pass rushers in free agency compared to linebacker, finding help in the draft at edge rusher while pursuing linebacker in free agency might be a more financially wise approach for Licht and his staff.
It’s likely Crosby has a new home in 2026. However, if the Bucs are truly smitten with the Las Vegas star and Glazer is right about the asking price, it could get very burdensome, both financially and with draft capital, to bring the veteran to Tampa Bay. And that might not be a smart move for the franchise.
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