New England Patriots
“No way Tom was sending Maxx to [Mike] Vrabel.”
Tom Brady is a minority owner of the Raiders. Anna Webber/Getty Images
March 8, 2026 | 4:32 PM
1 minute to read
Tom Brady delivered the Patriots six Super Bowl titles during his illustrious playing career, but the now Raiders minority owner might not have wanted to do another favor for his former team.
After the Patriots missed out on trading for Maxx Crosby, a report from ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler pointed to the possibility that Brady might have prevented the star edge rusher from ending up in New England. A person “involved” in the Crosby trade told Fowler that there was “No way Tom was sending Maxx to [Mike] Vrabel.”
The Raiders ultimately agreed to trade Crosby to the Ravens for two first-round picks on Friday. With the Ravens including the 14th overall pick in the 2026 draft as part of that deal, the Patriots might have had to surrender more than that in a possible deal for Crosby.
It hasn’t been reported what the Patriots’ offer for Crosby was, or if they even made an offer for him at all. But, they were believed to be in the running for him, as Crosby had previously told The Athletic‘s Dianna Russini that he’d like to play for Vrabel.
Regardless of what the Patriots might have offered for Crosby, Sunday’s report is the latest to hit at some potential friction between Brady and the Patriots. Ahead of Super Bowl LX, Brady said that he didn’t have a “dog in the fight” in the Patriots-Seahawks matchup.
That comment and Sunday’s report came less than a year after the Patriots honored Brady with a statue outside of Gillette Stadium in August. They also retired his No. 12 and expedited his induction into the Patriots’ Hall of Fame in 2024.
Brady joined the Raiders’ ownership group in 2024. It’s been reported on multiple occasions since then that he has a say in football operations, such as being involved in the hiring of new head coach Klint Kubiak.
As for the Patriots, they’ll likely have to hit the free-agent market in order to improve at edge rusher. They’ve been connected to Eagles standout Jaelan Phillips and Boye Mafe of the Seahawks ahead of free agency. K’Lavon Chaisson will also hit free agency this week.
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