Oakland Raiders: 5 matchups to watch vs. Los Angeles Chargers
By John Buhler
Michael Crabtree vs. Casey Hayward
With Amari Cooper struggling to bring in catches, let’s look for Oakland’s other 1,000-yard receiver in Michael Crabtree to have a big game on Sunday versus the Chargers. He will have a very difficult matchup in Week 6, as he will be lined up across from Chargers Pro Bowl cornerback Casey Hayward.
Hayward has emerged as a sneaky, under-the-radar top-12 cornerback in football since joining the Chargers organization. Maybe the Green Bay Packers regret letting him leave town a few years back? Hayward has been excellent for the Chargers the last couple of seasons, but so has Crabtree.
Crabtree has already been stopped by Josh Norman this year. He might have wanted to go against Aqib Talib in Week 4, but that bruised lung injury stemming from Week 3 kept him out of that one. Hayward will be the next Pro Bowl cornerback Crabtree will have to go up against and still find ways to make plays. Can he do it?
He’ll need to be a big factor in the Raiders’ passing game, as quarterback Derek Carr is working his way back from injury, as well as Cooper’s pass-catching woes. You’ll likely see Crabtree and Hayward push for the best out of each other. It’ll be great competition on the outside. Both will win a handful of snaps in this high stakes game.