Amari Cooper vs Marcus Peters: The new rivalry

Sep 27, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Oakland Raiders receiver Amari Cooper (89) is pursued by Cleveland Browns safety Tashaun Gipson (39) and cornerback Tramon Williams (22) on a 40-yard reception in the second quarter in a NFL game at FirstEnergy Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Advantage Cooper

The advantage in this big rookie rival matchup is clearly on the side of Cooper in every way it can be. Cooper is already one of the best route-runners in the NFL and he has the speed to blow past you. Peters is physical but not very fast or quick so staying with fast receivers or route-runners is difficult for him.

His one strength, press coverage, is something nullified by Cooper’s ability to be press coverage. He beat Revis off the line and had him beat deep on their first play against each other but a bad throw by quarterback Carr caused the incompletion. He beat him off the line a few other times for some catches and sure enough, Revis backed up a few yards.

But what’s bigger than their individual skill-sets are their surrounding factors because football is a team game. Penn and Raiders right tackle Austin Howard have seen the best of edge-rushers and have kept Carr clean for the most part plus Justin Houston is out with a knee injury. That gives Carr time to wait for Cooper to break open down the field on double moves.

And that takes away Peters’ ability to jump short routes as he’ll be concerned about deeper routes once he is beaten. So at this time, every advantage goes to Cooper as he is hard for All-Pros to cover. Unless the Chiefs have Sean Smith follow Cooper, look for Cooper to have success when lined up over him.