The Chicago Bears have a few needs to address this offseason, primarily the edge rusher group.
Outside of Montez Sweat, Chicago lacked pass-rushing production in the position room, and that must change in 2026 in order for the Bears to make a deeper run in the postseason.
Chicago could look to the free agency market or the draft to solve the need, but Bleacher Report’s Alex Ballentine also believes the Bears could target Las Vegas Raiders edge rusher Maxx Crosby in a trade to bolster the pass-rush.
Here is what Ballentine had to say about Crosby and why he makes sense for the Bears:
“The biggest name that will likely be attached to them throughout the trade season is Maxx Crosby. There was clearly tension between the star pass-rusher and the Raiders at the end of the season. The Bears got 10 sacks out of Montez Sweat, but they could still use another dominant defensive end to pair with him.”
Crosby’s future with the Raiders is always brought into the spotlight, as the franchise has failed to build a winner and is wasting the superstar edge rusher’s prime.
Additionally, Ceosby and the franchise got into a disagreement towards the end of the 2025 season regarding the treatment of his knee injury, which has caused more tension.
It may be best for both Crosby and the Raiders to move on from each other, and if this happens, the Bears should go all-in for the five-time Pro Bowler.
Crosby, who has been selected to two second-team All-Pro teams in his career, is one of the most relentless defensive players in football, having posted double-digit sacks in three of the last four years.
The 28-year-old also led the league in tackles for loss in 2022 and 2023, and had a career 28 tackles for loss in 2025.
Adding Crosby to the defensive line would elevate Chicago’s defense. The Eastern Michigan product would form a dominant duo with Sweat and elevate the Bears to a legitimate Super Bowl contender in the NFC.
With three draft picks in the top-100 of April’s draft and plenty of young talent on the roster that could also be included in a trade package, Chicago has the firepower to pull off a move for Crosby.
However, it remains unclear whether he will leave Las Vegas this offseason and seek a fresh start elsewhere.
