Raiders quarterback Kirk Cousins and star edge rusher Maxx Crosby got into a scuffle on Friday during practice.
Cousins appeared upset that Crosby tipped his pass, forcing an incompletion, and then charged the 6-foot-5, 256-pound defensive end who is three inches taller and 42 pounds heavier.
The Raiders also enter the season with a new head coach in Klint Kubiak, who recently won Super Bowl LX as the Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator. Regarding Crosby and Cousin’s scuffle, Kubiak addressed the matter in terms of training camp competition.
“Those are two leaders of our team going at it, so that is part of camp,” coach Klint Kubiak said. “Obviously, if you fight in a game and throw a punch in game, then you’re out of the game. So we’ve got to be smart and treat it like a game.”
Cousins recently signed with the Raiders after two seasons with the Atlanta Falcons and Crosby is back in Las Vegas after a brief offseason in Baltimore where he was originally traded in March.
The quarterback battle between Cousins and Mendoza has been a main topic of conversation, as Mendoza has been making a strong impression despite Cousins taking first team snaps. For Crosby, he remains the anchor of the Raider’s defense heading into his eighth season.
While Cousins stayed on the field to finish the drive, Crosby was immediately sent to the sidelines.
“We don’t want to be throwing punches, but I think on any padded day of camp, there’s going to be some tussles,” tight end Michael Mayer said. “That’s our starting quarterback right now, and you want him to defend your team, and you want him to have some edge to him, which he does…I don’t want him getting thrown out. I don’t want him getting a flag. Nothing like that, but you’ve got to be able to defend yourself.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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