The San Francisco 49ers are known for their strong defense on the football field, but it seems they once used a different kind of punishment against Las Vegas Raiders player Maxx Crosby: their words.
During a joint practice between the 49ers and Raiders, head coach Kyle Shanahan admitted to reporters that he had apologized to Crosby for the way the team treated him during his pre-draft interview in 2019.
Shanahan confessed that they were disrespectful to Crosby during the interview and acknowledged that he is now one of the best players in the league and a genuinely cool person.
“I wanted to apologize to him because we were kind of d—s to him. … We were kind of jerks to him in our interview when he came out of college, and he’s really one of the coolest dudes I’ve been around or seen, and he’s one of the best players in this league,” said Shanahan.
Kyle Shanahan shared why he apologized to Maxx Crosby today ? pic.twitter.com/fvEZJgxPfw
— 49ers on NBCS (@NBCS49ers) August 10, 2023
Although Shanahan took responsibility for the apology, he attributed the harsh interview to defensive line coach Kris Kocurek, who had Crosby as his first interviewee during the pre-draft process.
Kocurek’s aggressive behavior was so extreme that the 49ers’ general manager, John Lynch, had to intervene.
Kocurek later apologized and claimed that his previous coach, Adam Gase, encouraged him to intimidate prospects during interviews.
Despite the tough treatment, Crosby remained unfazed and took it in stride.
However, it should be noted that the 49ers passed on Crosby three times before he was eventually selected by the Raiders in the fourth round.
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