Jerry Jones shouldn’t be fooled by what Klint Kubiak just said about Maxx Crosby

With two first-round picks in the upcoming NFL Draft, the Dallas Cowboys are primed to add needed blue-chip talent to their defense. But what if they leveraged that Round 1 capital to land a proven player who could dramatically raise both their floor and ceiling in 2026?

Maxx Crosby fits that description to a tee, and his future with the Las Vegas Raiders is as murky as ever following a tumultuous end to the 2025 regular season.

Newly minted Raiders head coach Klint Kubiak did his best to extinguish the Crosby fire in his introductory press conference on Tuesday, saying, "We want him to be a part of our success going forward."

While a declarative statement from Kubiak, Jerry Jones shouldn't blink. In fact, he should be blowing up the phone lines of Raiders general manager John Spytek and minority owner Tom Brady.

The Dallas Cowboys should still hound the Raiders about a Maxx Crosby trade

It’s one thing for Kubiak to say he wants Crosby back. Crosby is one of the best players in the NFL. Of course Kubiak doesn't want to lose him. But what Kubiak wants, what Crosby wants, and what Spytek and Brady believe is in the Raiders’ best interest are three very different things.

Furthermore, there’s a growing paper trail suggesting Crosby may want out.

For starters, Crosby was not in attendance for Kubiak’s press conference despite grabbing coffee with him Tuesday morning. Several players were absent, including star tight end Brock Bowers, but Crosby’s decision not to show will only fuel speculation. He would have quieted a lot of the noise by showing face.

For what it's worth, Crosby attended the introductory press conferences for Pete Carroll and Antonio Pierce. Maybe that’s a coincidence, but it only reinforces that the speculation door remains wide open.

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Finally, Jason LaCanfora of SportsBoom.com recently spoke to an anonymous general manager who told him that Crosby informed Tom Brady that "he'll retire before he ever plays for them (the Raiders) again."

It's worth noting that Myles Garrett told the Cleveland Browns something similar last offseason before signing an extension worth $40 million per year. That outcome is still on the table for Crosby, but this feels deeper than a leverage play for a new deal.

The Cowboys admittedly aren't oozing cap space, but they absolutely have the means to absorb Crosby's salary and give him a new deal.

At the end of the day, Prescott will be entering his age-33 season in 2026. His mental command of the quarterback position should allow him to play well into his 30s, but the reality is that he may only have a couple of years left of playing at an MVP-caliber level.

Using both first-round picks on young talent is tempting, but flipping one of them and a future Day 2 or Day 3 pick for Maxx Crosby is a no-brainer, as it better aligns with the Cowboys’ urgency to win a Super Bowl under Prescott’s current contract.