Mike Tannenbaum Still Thinks Bucs Can Get Maxx Crosby
March 16th, 2026
Not over til it’s over.
Keep hope alive?
That’s the first thing that went through Joe’s head when he saw former Jets and Dolphins shot-caller Mike Tannenbaum suggest the Bucs can still make a deal for Raiders beastly edge rusher Maxx Crosby.
Last week, it appeared Crosby was headed to Baltimore but then at the last second, the Crows got cold feet claimed Crosby blew a physical and Crosby was shipped back to Las Vegas.
Joe has never been an NFL general manager, but Joe does play one on the internet. Tannenbaum was an NFL general manager for two teams.
Perhaps Tannenbaum, egged on by ADD-afflicted BSPN producers, is just throwing raw meat at the wolves here? Or perhaps he is sincere and is coming at this with a fair and open mind based on his years of front office experience? One year ago on BSPN, Buccaneers Ring of Honor general manager Jason Licht revealed that Tannenbaum is a confidant of his.
Tannenbaum is still of the belief Crosby can be had in the wake of his trade to Baltimore blowing up.
This time, Tannenbaum does not believe any team will dangle two first-round picks in front of Raiders general manager John Spytek’s face. However, Tannenbaum believes if Spytek was looking to move Crosby once, he easily could be looking to move him again.
Tannenbaum thinks a Crosby trade is ideal for either the Bills or the Bucs. Here is what Tannenbaum proposes: The Bucs send two second-round picks to Las Vegas. One in next month’s draft and one in 2027. However, the 2027 second-round pick is conditional.
If, Tannenbaum said, Crosby balls out this fall, then that 2027 second-round pick turns into a first-round pick. Joe thinks this is very fair.
On the latest edition of the Ira Kaufman Podcast, Joe told Ira he’d still trade for Crosby: a first-round pick and a conditional second-round pick. So what Tannenbaum is proposing is very similar.
Joe has no idea if Crosby is still on the trade block. But Joe would rather bank on a guy who regularly has double-digit sacks than banking on a backup, Al-Quadin Muhammad, who never started a game last year, getting 11 sacks again. Last year was the first time he’s ever had more than six in a season.
.@RealTannenbaum outlines potential trade proposals for Maxx Crosby 🍿 pic.twitter.com/edx2s6r9XN
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) March 13, 2026
March 16th, 2026 at 3:58 am
Go get him Licht!
Seriously I doubt it though.
March 16th, 2026 at 4:47 am
Get him. If the Bucs do not generate a legit pass rush, 2026 will be rinse and repeat of 2025. And that = mediocre again.
Enough is enough, without a pass rush Todds Defense gets exposed. With a pass rush Todds defense pounded Mahome boy into mince meat and helped win a Super Bowl.
And here is 1 of the Joe’s favorite Al Davis quote.
Al Davis “In the first 5-10 plays, the QB must go down and go down hard”
I agree 1000%
GO BUCS!!!!!
March 16th, 2026 at 4:47 am
Joe think how U gonna feel if Mad Maxx is never the same player again, Bucs are paying him $30 million plus per season, and add insult to injury a young pass rusher in the draft the Bucs COULD have had goes somewhere else and turns out to be just as productive as Crosby USED TO BE???? It’s not that the comparison is between AQM vs Crosby it’s ALL the possibilities in addition WITH AQM add new blood vs Crosby and his huge salary !!STAY THE COURSE LICHT you’re due to FINALLY draft a big time Edge Rusher GO BUCS 🚩🏴☠️🚩‼️
March 16th, 2026 at 4:50 am
He’s not coming licht doesn’t like wasting his draft picks picks ##!!
March 16th, 2026 at 4:56 am
Bucs can not afford 2-2’s
This team is rebuilding in a organized manner, giving up draft picks for a old man is reckless and irresponsible.
NO
Now moving up in the draft at some point and giving up picks is another story…. Yeah blah blah blah about a proven player vs a rookie
This team is not one player away from anything!
March 16th, 2026 at 4:59 am
Why are some of you so hellbent on wasting resources for ONE player? Think! More sacks doesn’t equal wins, ask the Browns. Maxx is injury prone plus Bowles will have him in coverage on passing downs anyway. The Bucs aren’t a player away to overspend for a guy that won’t help the Bucs win and he’ll probably get injured again. The Bucs are already paying any injury prone QB, how’s that going?
March 16th, 2026 at 5:11 am
Hey they can save the resources and stay in a mediocre cycle, yeah great, NOT.
Time to actually be competitive again, instead of the slop of last year, and lifeless performance after lifeless performance.
They are so amazing right now, players are leaving to actually compete for a ring. Which right now is a distant foggy looking dream.
March 16th, 2026 at 5:31 am
Maxx Crosby would be fine, but the Bucs really need to acquire Jim Schwartz and make him DC
You can’t do one without the other as far as I am concerned!!!
March 16th, 2026 at 5:42 am
Who Dat!
March 16th, 2026 at 6:22 am
Bucs right now are ranked #31 in the NFL with slightly less than $1.0 mil of CAP space and still needing to pay Anzalone, Gainwell, Muhammad, Killebrew, Robinson, Kieft, Browning & Feeney. We don’t know the salary amounts of all those signings, but it’s probably in the neighborhood of $37-$38 mil for annual pay (CAP hit could be less in 2026 if that’s how Bucs choose to go). Plus our draft pool will cost us about $11.4 mil (current estimate) so that takes us up to needing to come up about $50 mil in CAP space to free up some significant CAP space to add those 8 FAs plus say 6 draft picks.
Bumping off the bottom 14 current players to accomodate the new/draft signings frees up about $14 mil but we’d still need to free up about another $40 mil of CAP space. We can do that by cutting players OR restructuring contracts. Looks to me like we have somewhat of a dilemma because restructuring usually means committing to keeping the player longer, and I’m not sure who other than Wirfs & Goedeke the Bucs really want to commit to long term.
March 16th, 2026 at 6:24 am
I have to admit the price would be a lot better. I think the real problem is that, as complex as it is, the rest of the NFL has simply figured out it’s rather obvious drawbacks. Besides, when you have one guy who happens to be highly injury prone commanding half your salary cap you’re already dancing on the head of a pin. I guess NFL contracts are so complicated that even AI can’t quite decipher their intricacies, I’m pretty sure there’s a ton of guaranteed money left on that deal. He would be worth a flyer if he were the last piece of the puzzle, but that defense is really gone to pot. Even if Crosby returns to form he would find himself in exactly the same position as he was in with the Raiders.
As an aside, I’ve noticed a fair share of draft “gurus”. Sending us a tight end at 15 or trading down. The tight end has some kind of Arab sounding name. I’d rather take a defender, but
March 16th, 2026 at 6:33 am
Trade AWJ, Braswell and a RD3 pick. Money is close. Winfield is a “Pro Bowler”. Spyrteck was big on Braswell when we drafted him. AWJ is one of the guys that got his bag a few years ago and stopped playing.
And now Spyteck is stuck with a big contract and a bunch of new FA’s that he has to pay.
March 16th, 2026 at 6:36 am
The price ain’t the same. He is now maybe worth a first round and a 5th
March 16th, 2026 at 6:40 am
“…a young pass rusher in the draft the Bucs COULD have had goes somewhere else and turns out to be just as productive as Crosby USED TO BE????”
– – – – – – – – – – – – –
Finding a Maxx Crosby in the draft is literally like finding the proverbial needle in the very big hay stack. Crosby was drafted in the 4th rd in 2019, he was the 106th selection, so he was passed over 105 times before the Raiders got very, very lucky. 1st rd picks are said to have, at BEST, a 50/50 shot to turn into just a good NFL player. This is backed up by the fact that less than 50% of 1st rd picks have their 5th year team option exercised. I wonder what the odds are that a 4th rd pick turns into an All Pro?
What the Bucs would get in this trade is a player at a HIGH need position. A position that is the 2nd most important for any NFL team just behind the QB. Crosby would make our entire defense look better bc he would get pressure on the QB giving him less time to pick apart our secondary. He is also excellent at stopping the run (unlike Hendrickson).
Ok, so the Bucs lose a 2nd round pick and a 1st next year. What is that? First, trading a pick that is in next year’s draft is considered to be one round lower in value for the present year, ie, if we gave up a 1st for next year it is like giving up the value of a 2nd rd in this years draft. So that would be the equivalent to trading two Morrisons.
Would I trade 2 Morrisons for Crosby? In a heart beat if Maxx is healthy.
March 16th, 2026 at 6:45 am
^^^ but I doubt Licht will consider it.
March 16th, 2026 at 7:17 am
Makes no sense. Joe, stick to wordsmithing.
March 16th, 2026 at 7:21 am
I’m just glad we’ve established “regularly” is 1/2 the time or 50%. Always wondered about that.
March 16th, 2026 at 7:41 am
Please, give it rest. Ain’t happening, and it shouldn’t
March 16th, 2026 at 7:46 am
Joe, you failed to mention that in his proposal, Tannenbaum said that the deal included “NO PHYSICAL.” It would be crazy not to give him a physical in light of Baltimore’s about face.
March 16th, 2026 at 7:47 am
Sounds fair. Hell, give em’ this years first and conditional 2nd next year
March 16th, 2026 at 7:53 am
DR, always the voice of reason. I believe the Bucs already restructured a couple of contracts (pls check me on that) to accommodate the previous signings. Signing Crosby could create a salary cap nightmare for future years. It is not the draft compensation , but the cap that is the issue. Folks, look at the entire situation 360, it just isn’t feasible.
March 16th, 2026 at 7:59 am
Give him a physical first. Then decide what to do.
March 16th, 2026 at 8:05 am
Unhealthy infatuation and I think our activity on the free agent market makes this a lot less likely.
March 16th, 2026 at 8:19 am
@ DR
I believe the Bucs just restructured Goedeke and ZM…
I wouldn’t mind trading Braswell and our 1st round pick for Crosby but you are correct the high salary could be an obstacle.
March 16th, 2026 at 8:23 am
@ DR
From the web:
“Yes, as of March 12, 2026, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers restructured the contracts of cornerback Zyon McCollum and offensive tackle Luke Goedeke to create approximately $26 million in 2026 salary cap space. These restructures converted roster bonuses into signing bonuses, spreading the cap hits across the remainder of their contracts to accommodate new free-agent signings.”
March 16th, 2026 at 8:25 am
The Ravens didn’t get cold feet, they looked closely at his MRI.
March 16th, 2026 at 8:31 am
If I were in charge of the Buccaneers I’d be thinking of Carl Nicks. Did he even play a down for the Bucs? The Saints were laughing for years that we didn’t catch the injury.
March 16th, 2026 at 8:52 am
All I know is for the last couple of weeks I have been researching the Edge Rushers, LBers, Tight Ends, and needs of the 13 team’s needs picking ahead of the Bucs(Raiders don’t count cause everybody knows they taking Mendosa)!! I’m convinced even if the Bucs don’t move up, stand firm at #15 THERE WILL BE a very good Edge Rushing prospect left still on the board so this upcoming 2026 draft LICHT’s future as the Bucs GM( including his staff) have to answer the bell and NAIL the best possible selection or more than ANYTHING ELSE the Glazers have to move on from Licht if he fails on this 1st round pick!!! NO DOUBT
March 16th, 2026 at 9:07 am
It will never happen while Licht is the GM.
Parting with two second round picks is fair.
Plus, Licht always bungles the second round picks for some reason.
Keep those pipe dreams alive Joe!!!
Much like the fantasy that Bowles will become a SB winning HC.
March 16th, 2026 at 9:08 am
Bucjim, I thought it was MRSA that ended Carl Nicks career.
March 16th, 2026 at 9:10 am
“It will never happen while Licht is the GM.
Parting with two second round picks is fair.”
Fair!? 2-players later for one, rehabbing right now?
That’s Schiano & Dominik pining for Revis in ’13 behavior.
So yes, let’s tank the cap management our front office has been mitigating the last 2-3 seasons and pay top shelf price for a scratch and dent unit.
March 16th, 2026 at 9:16 am
Yup.
March 16th, 2026 at 9:17 am
@ Marinebuc.
The less than $1 million already took into account the restructures contracts for McCollum and Goedeke. The Bucs still need to restructure more contracts or trade or cut expensive players to get under the salary cap for the free agents and draft class. (Spotrac is known for being unreliable. And yes, the Bucs have minor work to do.)
March 16th, 2026 at 9:32 am
The non-starter/potential sharter are the 2nd round picks. Licht outmaneuvers everyone with his plucky 2nd round picks. It’s a fun thought though during off-season lulls.
March 16th, 2026 at 9:48 am
The Bucs might (gasp) want to resign Baker to restructure his 53mil cap hit. Otherwise, it is Wirfs and AWJ. Godwin is costing a fortune at 33 mil but I doubt they want to push any into the future. ’27 cap doesn’t look any better. Accounting for QB salary to be added (unless we go with a rookie) along with resigning the new 1 year deals has us similar to this year. Don’t be fooled by the 100mil cap space shown. It doesn’t account for QB and all the other players to fill the basic roster.
Crosby is a fantasy unless you mortgage the future for a 3 year rental.
March 16th, 2026 at 9:54 am
Bucs not going to give up 2027 1st rounder….
If this year blows up, Baker will be free agent…
2037 draft class is supposed to be QB rich….
Thy will have a high draft pick and will start the rebuild with a lot of cap space…
March 16th, 2026 at 9:55 am
2027 draft class not 2037, lol
March 16th, 2026 at 10:03 am
I think Crosby, Dean and Evans should get a Podcast called, “Let Me Tell You What Happened”…. then we can cut right to the chase and Joe can give us other articles.
I appreciate what the Joe’s do especially grinding out something in the off season, but I am worn out on Crosby / Evans.
March 16th, 2026 at 10:31 am
Mike Evans is a 49er.
The Bucs are an abomination.
March 16th, 2026 at 10:46 am
No thanks. Keep our draft picks and pick some solid players that will be here for 4-5 years before the next contracts.
March 16th, 2026 at 10:49 am
Nicks original injury was torn plantar plate. Reports suggested it would permanently affect him for the rest of his life. Along the way he picked up MRSA. The Toe injury itself would have affected his play even without the staph infection.
March 16th, 2026 at 10:51 am
@JOE
Somebody added to my last post. I did not post “(Spotrac is known for being unreliable. And yes, the Bucs have minor work to do.)” How did that end up as part of my post. Spotrak is not unreliable. The Bucs have major work to do to sign the FA’s and the draft class.
March 16th, 2026 at 10:55 am
Might as well, Licht will waste those picks anyway!
March 16th, 2026 at 12:00 pm
I’m hoping Crosby is the reason the Bucs have been misers in FA thus far. The cap doesn’t exist. I hope Spytek will give Licht a deal with which he, the Glazers and Bowles can redeem themselves.
His contract is team friendly, and he is a force of nature on the field. These picks are way overvalued projections. No rush but this has to happen.
March 16th, 2026 at 12:47 pm
@Hope
They’re misers because they already spent all the cap and have to use future money to pay 40mil on the 1year rentals they just got. Crosby is not in the cards. Clickbait for podcasters.
March 16th, 2026 at 1:37 pm
He has only missed five games in seven seasons. Two were last year when he was held out even though he said he could play. I am not that worried about the knee!
I would even consider the two firsts. He and Anzalone could be good leaders for the defense. They have been missing that, I believe. LVD is a good leader by example, primarily.
March 16th, 2026 at 1:40 pm
Badbucs- I’m all for going $30 mil in the hole for Crosby. The Daily Bucs links had that story about a new tv deal that I only scanned but with that deal will come the others and the new, greater revenue share will conveniently wipe the Bucs back into the black. I’m sure Licht and Greenberg know this. The question really is will the Glazers front any more loot before they start getting their dividend checks in July. If the Bucs want to wait until then to evaluate his knee and at that point trade for Crosby, I think that’s a fine idea. I hope Spytek will give Licht a heads-up if another team makes a serious play for Crosby before that point so the Bucs can not miss this golden opportunity.
March 16th, 2026 at 2:03 pm
I am thinking the same type thing, alot if not most of the teams that were in the market for a high priced FA have already made the deal to get another option plus even after they give Vegas the 2 picks there’s a little matter of paying Crosby his ransom fortune . Again most of the top contenders are full to their Cap. The Bucs should be in good shape to grab Crosby if they are willing to pay up & i think they might cause our Rock Star GM ain’t real good at picking Edge rushers. We’ll we can hope , Crosby’s price might be negotiable depending on physical results ,maybe ,who knows but the Bucs ought to be kicking the tires.
March 16th, 2026 at 2:09 pm
Williston to your FanBase Listen to Lefty R get o good aggressive DEFENSIVE CORDINATOR!!!!
March 16th, 2026 at 2:28 pm
Hope.
I don’t have a problem with manipulating for 30 mil either. I’m afraid it’s going to be more like 70. They’ll be at 40 just to get the over the hill gang signed restructuring Wirfs, etc. To get Crosby They’ll have to sign and restructure Baker this year. I don’t think that’s part of the plan. Maybe they have another way but I don’t see it. Especially if they have any concerns about Crosby’s longevity. Go Bucs!
March 16th, 2026 at 2:36 pm
Tannenbaum thinks a Crosby trade is ideal for either the Bills or the Bucs. Here is what Tannenbaum proposes: The Bucs send two second-round picks to Las Vegas. One in next month’s draft and one in 2027. However, the 2027 second-round pick is conditional.
———-
LOL!
Whoever this guy is, is an idiot if he thinks Vegas would make that deal after getting two 1st’s.
Also there is the issue that the Cowboys will absolutely give up at least a 1st rounder.
This guy is nuts if he thinks the Bucs can get him for a 2nd rounder, and a conditional 2nd rounder. Probably the same guy who said Garrett was available during the season for a 3rd round pick.
March 16th, 2026 at 2:59 pm
I’d definitely do that deal, especially considering that, for some reason, the Bucs always seem to blow it with tjeir second pick.
March 16th, 2026 at 5:37 pm
4get Crosby now. Just draft one Rd 1 period.
March 16th, 2026 at 9:00 pm
We should trade a 4th and a 7th for Crosby, and give the Browns as 2029 3rd rounder for Garrett. If Licht would get those deals done we could finally win – but he refuses to make the deal even though teams are calling and begging for our mid-to-late round picks!
March 16th, 2026 at 9:02 pm
Scotty Mack Says:
March 16th, 2026 at 2:59 pm
I’d definitely do that deal
——
Everyone would do that deal – if he was available at the price, he’d be traded in a fraction of a second.
The Raiders would never, ever, take a 2nd rounder and a conditional 2nd rounder after getting two 1st’s, they’ll literally take nothing and have him hold out before they’d do that deal.
Also, as stated above, the Cowboys will 100% give up at least a 1st rounder and something else for him, probably on the low end a 1st and a 3rd, but more likely a 1st and a 2nd.
The idea this jackball thinks the Raiders would make this nonsense deal is truly laughable.
March 17th, 2026 at 11:44 am
Don’t trade our draft picks for defensive end sack artists. If they were so important to winning, the Raiders and Bengals would be perennial Super Bowl teams. Better to have a balanced football team with above average players at almost every position (like Seattle) than put all your eggs in one extremely high priced basket.
March 17th, 2026 at 4:27 pm
Trade Braswell? Hahaha.
He isn’t even worth a 7th round pick.
He’s one of the reasons our special teams was heartless last year.
I want to start cutting guys who loaf.
“If you give them your hand, they take your arm.”- An Albanian proverb
Cut the slackers!!!
March 17th, 2026 at 7:41 pm
Look the guy is a beast period. BUT there something to be said about edge rushers either in or approaching age 30. INJURIES. Do we really give up 2 ones . I guess if you want to gamble 2 possible defensive (# 1 picks) studs then yes. IMO Vita is starting to rack up injuries. Crosby missed time last year. We need an infusion of young talent on defense our we will miss playoffs again next year