NFL fans often wonder who their favorite superstars go home to after every game or who is an athlete’s “biggest supporter.” But in the case of Las Vegas Raiders Pro Bowl edge rusher Maxx Crosby, his wife has taken on a unique path including playing her own version of football.
Who Is Rachel Washburn?
Rachel Washburn is the woman attached to the Raiders’ top pass rusher.
Washburn is her own athlete as a past women’s soccer player at their alma mater, Eastern Michigan University. They both met during a time Crosby was rushing passers for EMU.
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Washburn established herself as a four-year starter on the soccer field as a stout defender.
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Surprisingly, though, the two didn’t officially meet until 2016 — which was Crobsy’s first season of earning action with the Eagles.
Washburn Supported Crosby in Darkest Moments
Crosby is known more as a relentless pass rusher. He’s also inspired many with his path to sobriety.
In this interview with ESPN in 2022, Crosby detailed the bouts he had with excessive alcohol use while also becoming addicted to cocaine and other drugs.
“I was doing well to the outside world. I was runner-up to the rookie of the year. Everyone’s like, Maxx is killing it. But I was like wild as …,” Crosby told Michelle Beisner-Buck. “I was drinking. I was smoking. I was doing coke here or there. I was off the wall. I’d take a pill. I didn’t even know what it was. It was scary.”
Crosby also admitted: “I put her through hell, and nobody knew, like, the extent. Nobody even believed her. That’s such a sad, lonely feeling. That still hurts me to this day.”
And the person he credits the most for his path to recovery? His wife.
The couple happily completed their nuptials at Cascata Golf Club in Boulder City, Nevada on March 4, 2023.
Turns out they became parents before they walked down the aisle.
The now married couple welcomed their first child on October 13, 2022 — which came nearly eight months after the Raiders end proposed to Washburn. And Crosby proposed to her while surrounded by snow-capped mountains on a vacation in Utah.
Ironically, Crosby got married in the same month his former Raiders teammate Darren Waller married his wife, Kelsey Plum.
How Has Crosby Fared This Season?
While the Raiders are struggling at 3-4 overall and fielding fan backlash for their head coach Josh McDaniels, Crosby and the defense has been a bright spot.
The Silver and Black currently has the No. 10 overall defense in the league, allowing an average of 316.4 yards per game.
Crosby has started in all seven games for the Raiders. And in that span, he’s delivered 6.5 sacks. That number has him tied for sixth-best in the NFL.
Crosby has a chance to earn his third consecutive Pro Bowl appearance if he can remain healthy. And Washburn has been credited for helping her husband redeem himself from going down a dark path.