‘Tears to my eyes’ – Jon Gruden visibly choked after Maxx Crosby hands over surprise Raiders gift
Jon Gruden is synonymous with on franchise that means more to him than any other. That is the Las Vegas Raiders, who he coached between 1998 to 2001 before returning for the second time in 2018 before resigning amid controversial circumstances in 2021. Maxx Crosby had a special gift for Jon GrudenGetty Despite his affinity with the Raiders, it came as something of a surprise when franchise star Maxx Crosby surprised his former coach with a gift. In a video posted on X, Gruden shared how his former player sent him a box full of Raiders gear, a gift that caused the 61-year-old to get emotional. “The box we just got delivered brought actual tears to my eyes,” Gruden wrote on X. “There’s truly nothing better than wearing the silver and black, and thank you to @CrosbyMaxx for the newest addition to my Raider jersey wall! “Once a Raider always a Raider!” Gruden went further with his praise for Crossby, stating how much he admires the defensive end. “This is going to bring tears to my eyes, Maxx Crosby, I tell you what, you are the best man. This is the greatest gift ever. That is one of my favorite guys I ever met, Maxx Crosby,” Gruden added. Gruden’s emotional reaction might also be the result of how much he misses coaching in the NFL. The 11-year veteran has been away from the sidelines for three-years and currently works for Barstool Sports. He has a 117-112 career record in the NFL and won the Super Bowl in 2002 in his first season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Jon Gruden coached the Raiders in two separate stintsGetty With the Raiders, Gruden went 60-57 in eight years as head coach, leaving in 2021 after The New York Times and Wall Street Journal uncovered emails from Gruden reportedly dating back to 2010 that detailed the use of racist, homophobic and misogynistic terms. It’s early for 2025 hopes to get too high but Gruden has had nothing but praise for the Raiders business so far/ “I feel good again,” Gruden said about the Raiders. “Pete Carroll, Geno Smith is in town, we got the draft coming up, we got Malcolm Koonce, we got Maxx Crosby, and we got Christian Wilkins coming back healthy. “We are going to have a pass rush that replicates the great ones in Raiders history.” The Las Vegas franchise finished 4-13 last season but have addressed key issues in the offseason. As they have a new coach in Pete Carroll and quarterback in Geno Smith. The Raiders also have the sixth pick which ESPN project to be Ashton Jeanty, a running back from Boise State. We’ll have to wait for the upcoming NFL season to know if Gruden’s optimism is justified or not. Stay up to date with the latest from across the NFL via our talkSPORT Facebook page, and subscribe to our Endzone YouTube channel for news, view and exclusive interviews as we build up to the NFL Draft in April
Jon Gruden is synonymous with on franchise that means more to him than any other.
That is the Las Vegas Raiders, who he coached between 1998 to 2001 before returning for the second time in 2018 before resigning amid controversial circumstances in 2021.
Despite his affinity with the Raiders, it came as something of a surprise when franchise star Maxx Crosby surprised his former coach with a gift.
In a video posted on X, Gruden shared how his former player sent him a box full of Raiders gear, a gift that caused the 61-year-old to get emotional.
“The box we just got delivered brought actual tears to my eyes,” Gruden wrote on X.
“There’s truly nothing better than wearing the silver and black, and thank you to @CrosbyMaxx for the newest addition to my Raider jersey wall!
“Once a Raider always a Raider!”
Gruden went further with his praise for Crossby, stating how much he admires the defensive end.
“This is going to bring tears to my eyes, Maxx Crosby, I tell you what, you are the best man. This is the greatest gift ever. That is one of my favorite guys I ever met, Maxx Crosby,” Gruden added.
Gruden’s emotional reaction might also be the result of how much he misses coaching in the NFL.
The 11-year veteran has been away from the sidelines for three-years and currently works for Barstool Sports.
He has a 117-112 career record in the NFL and won the Super Bowl in 2002 in his first season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
With the Raiders, Gruden went 60-57 in eight years as head coach, leaving in 2021 after The New York Times and Wall Street Journal uncovered emails from Gruden reportedly dating back to 2010 that detailed the use of racist, homophobic and misogynistic terms.
It’s early for 2025 hopes to get too high but Gruden has had nothing but praise for the Raiders business so far/
“I feel good again,” Gruden said about the Raiders.
“Pete Carroll, Geno Smith is in town, we got the draft coming up, we got Malcolm Koonce, we got Maxx Crosby, and we got Christian Wilkins coming back healthy.
“We are going to have a pass rush that replicates the great ones in Raiders history.”
The Las Vegas franchise finished 4-13 last season but have addressed key issues in the offseason.
As they have a new coach in Pete Carroll and quarterback in Geno Smith.
The Raiders also have the sixth pick which ESPN project to be Ashton Jeanty, a running back from Boise State.
We’ll have to wait for the upcoming NFL season to know if Gruden’s optimism is justified or not.
Stay up to date with the latest from across the NFL via our talkSPORT Facebook page, and subscribe to our Endzone YouTube channel for news, view and exclusive interviews as we build up to the NFL Draft in April
