Caleb Williams Names Maxx Crosby the Best Opponent—Crosby’s Surprising Reaction Revealed!

Sunday afternoon’s gridiron spectacle had a little bit of everything — grit, grit, and then some more grit. Maxx Crosby, the Raiders’ relentless defensive end, was on a mission to frustrate Bears quarterback Caleb Williams at every opportunity. Picture this: three tipped passes, an interception, a brutally timed hit mid-throw, plus a forced fumble — yeah, Crosby was absolutely everywhere. Despite Crosby’s tenacity, it was Williams and the Bears who emerged victorious, but the quarterback wasn’t shy about tipping his hat to a truly formidable adversary. “He’s probably the best player I’ve faced so far,” Williams said, clearly impressed. And Crosby? He soaked in those words like they were gold, revealing on his podcast just how much respect he’s developed for his opponent. The back-and-forth battle was fierce, but even as Williams engineered a final frame march to edge out the Raiders 25-24, he knew who truly ruled the battlefield. LEARN MORE

Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby made life tough for Bears quarterback Caleb Williams on Sunday: Crosby tipped three of Williams’ passes, once intercepted Williams, once hit Williams as he was passing, and once forced Williams to fumble.

The Bears managed to win anyway, but Williams came away from the game in awe of how good an opponent Crosby is.

“They’ve got a hell of a player over there,” Williams said of Crosby. “He’s probably the best player I’ve played against so far in my career. They’ve got a hell of a player.”

Crosby said on his podcast that he was honored to have that kind of respect from an opponent.

“Hearing that from a really good player is cool,” Crosby said. ‘Our matchup was all day — all day we were going back and forth, and he’s a competitor, I’ll give it to him. He didn’t back down, he kept getting back up, kept making plays. He definitely has my respect. He is hard to tackle. He makes plays happen.”

Williams did make it happen with a long drive in the game’s final minutes that gave the Bears a 25-24 win over the Raiders. But Williams knows the best player on the field was on the losing team.