England opening batter Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements made by captain Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder made those words in multiple interviews in the wake of his team's loss in the second Ashes versus Australia previously.
Ahead of the third Test, where England now face defeat with a match to spare, Stokes noted he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" among the playing group.
"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader.
However, following the opener scored 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the press with a pinch of salt," he added.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
Stokes issued his "weak men" comment after England were beaten in the second Test to fall two matches behind.
The team afterwards took a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third Tests.
Prior to this match, he revealed his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, Crawley stated the guidance from Stokes and head coach McCullum had remained consistent with their previous tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," said Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do something special entering this Test."
Australia On the Verge of Historic Ashes Triumph
The opener's wicket on day four was part of a decisive three-wicket burst by Australia spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – left the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a notional total of 435 runs.
This means, Australia need four wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 advantage with three Tests.
Defeat would prolong England's winless run in this country to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes loss.
This series will be completed in just eleven days of play – with England losing the first two Tests in rapid time respectively.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided more swiftly. Australia have also triumphed in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"This is disheartening," admitted the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel at this point."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we'll certainly approach it like that," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be hard coming here against them. They were the favourites coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
Although Crawley's performance in the third Test likely secures doubts about his short-term future in the side, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 in the team's second innings on day four, adding to his poor record against Australia.
Across 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top six in Ashes Tests and recorded a lower average.
But, Crawley said any suggestion Pope is under the microscope comes from "the media" – meaning the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "He has had a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced some really good knocks. It is noise externally. There is no chat like that on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
