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Oakland Raiders: 5 matchups to watch vs. Philadelphia Eagles in Week 16

By John Buhler

OAKLAND, CA - SEPTEMBER 17: Karl Joseph No. 42 of the Oakland Raiders celebrates after sacking the quarterback and recovering a fumble against the New York Jets during the fourth quarter of their NFL football game at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on September 17, 2017 in Oakland, California. The Raiders won the game 45-20. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CA - SEPTEMBER 17: Karl Joseph No. 42 of the Oakland Raiders celebrates after sacking the quarterback and recovering a fumble against the New York Jets during the fourth quarter of their NFL football game at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on September 17, 2017 in Oakland, California. The Raiders won the game 45-20. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /
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Does it get any better than this? My goodness. We’ve got the Raiders’ best player versus the best offensive linemen that Philadelphia has to offer in this high-profile matchup. It’s two Pro Bowlers going at it out on the edge in Raiders star defensive end Khalil Mack and Eagles stud right tackle Lane Johnson. Eat your heart out, football nerds.

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Mack has emerged as one of the top-10 talents in all of football since his second year with the Raiders in 2015.

He may not be able to repeat as Defensive Player of the Year for the Raiders, but there is no debate who the Raiders’ best talent is.

Johnson in the last few years has emerged as the star player in the rancid 2013 NFL Draft. When he is playing on the Eagles’ front-five, this team can beat anybody.

If Johnson is unable to go, the Eagles offense craters. He’s proven to be even more valuable than their other outstanding bookend tackle in Jason Peters.

Next: 5 Raiders to watch vs. Eagles in Week 16

Rather than move Johnson from right to left tackle, Eagles head coach Doug Pederson has opted to keep Johnson put for the sake of continuity. Moving into the starting lineup is Halapoulivaati Vaitai at left tackle and that has kind of worked out. The battles in the trenches are going to be tremendous on Monday night. No battle is more significant than Mack versus Johnson. Can’t believe we’re going to finally see this one go down.

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