Oakland Raiders: The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly vs. Chargers
By Kevin Saito
The Good: Amari Cooper‘s Big Day
Second year wideout Amari Cooper must love playing the Chargers. In his first meeting with San Diego, Cooper lit up the Chargers defense for 133 yards on five receptions. He also had a memorable 52 yard touchdown catch which he ran through the heart of the San Diego defense.
Injury slowed him in their second meeting, limiting him to just two receptions for 10 yards. But healthy and ready to work, Cooper made up for it by once again, shredding the San Diego defense.
More from Las Vegas Raiders News
- Raiders: Rookie stock report following Week 3 performance
- Raiders: Bryan Edwards out, Henry Ruggs doubtful for Sunday
- Raiders: Damon Arnette re-injures thumb, could be headed to IR
- Raiders fall short in letdown Week 3 loss to the New England Patriots
- Raiders: Game breakdown and prediction for Week 3 at New England Patriots
Cooper has had a relatively quiet year thus far, registering his only other 100 plus yard game in the season opener with New Orleans. In that game, he went off for 137 yards on six receptions, but was held out of the endzone.
Against San Diego, Cooper erupted for 138 yards on six receptions and scored his first touchdown of the year.
The lack of scoring from Cooper had been cause for concern among some, and plenty of ink had been spilled discussing it. For his part though, Cooper never worried about it. In his typically understated way of expressing himself, he said:
"“It’s not frustrating. Obviously you want to score every game but you just have to be patient.”"
Obviously, quarterback Derek Carr is not going to make a mistake by forcing a throw just to get Cooper into the endzone. He’s taking what the defense is giving him, and unfortunately, with so many teams focusing on Cooper because of his explosive ability, they’re not giving him much.
But with Michael Crabtree proving to be a lethal weapon in Carr’s arsenal, opposing defenses may not be able to ignore him. Which will provide Cooper with plenty of opportunities to make some plays.
San Diego found out how dangerous Cooper can be – again. He made them pay for a lack of attention. And hopefully, this is a fortuitous sign of things to come.