If teams are willing to keep throwing multiple 1st-round picks on the table, blockbuster trades are going to keep happening. Even though it feels like the NFL trade deadline is usually all talk and no substance, the tide has significantly turned in recent years.
One of the players who is going to be in focus ahead of the November 10 deadline is Las Vegas Raiders star defensive end Maxx Crosby, who was actually already traded once this year.
The Ravens decided to send him back after a physical, but Crosby was traded during the offseason for a pair of 1st-round picks. That has been the going rate for star defenders these days, so the Raiders should expect nothing less if they decide to part ways with Crosby.
With the team still in rebuilding mode (despite being 3-4 entering Week 8), offers will likely come in. But which teams should be the most desperate for Crosby?
3 NFL teams that should be desperate Maxx Crosby the most at the 2026 NFL trade deadline
1. Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills have had a terrible defense so far in the 2026 season. They rank 30th in the NFL in points allowed per game (28.5), and nobody in the NFL has allowed more 1st downs than Jim Leonhard's defense. The Bills also rank 31st against the pass this season, and are tied for 25th in the league in sacks per game (1.8).
A game-changer like Maxx Crosby would be a major needle mover for this Bills team, and would obviously give a boost to that side of the ball.
When you have a 1st-year coordinator struggling to...coordinate...you might have to get desperate and make a move to significantly upgrade the personnel on that side of the ball. Things have been relatively quiet on the trade front for Buffalo this year, but they could make some huge waves with a move for Maxx Crosby.
2. Detroit Lions
Playing in the best division in football (so far) this year, maybe especially because of it, the Detroit Lions have to do something to differentiate themselves.
The return of Brian Branch made an immediate impact on the defensive side of the ball, and the Lions had their best performance on that side of the ball in Week 7 against the Green Bay Packers. We'll see how they look against Minnesota in Week 8, even though the Vikings' offense has been one of the least threatening in the NFL so far this season.
Regardless, the larger sample so far this season has proven one thing is certain: The Detroit Lions are simply not good enough on the defensive side of the ball.
There have been major questions about what players they can and can't afford these days (hello, Sam LaPorta), but they have over $34 million in available cap space right now (per Over The Cap), and the Super Bowl window is wide open.
Lions GM Brad Holmes is a branch off the Les Snead tree, so we already know that the "F*** Them Picks" mentality is written in his DNA.
3. Dallas Cowboys
No active general manager in the NFL has been more willing to wheel and deal over the past couple of years than Jerry Jones, can we agree?
Jones has not seen a trade idea he didn't like for quite some time, and he still has draft capital to throw out there if he sees a possible upgrade to his roster.
The Cowboys have been rumored to have had interest in Crosby in the past, Jones said that it wasn't him who walked away from that interest.
Dallas has one of the worst defenses in the NFL (again) this year. Go figure. They have averaged just 1.4 sacks per game this season, which ranks 28th in the NFL. Even though the Cowboys have already given up picks for players like Quinnen Williams and Joey Porter Jr. recently, this is the type of move we've come to expect out of Jones.
And his team needs it.
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