Browns vs. Raiders: Five matchups to watch on Sunday

The Cleveland Browns are 2-8 on the season, but Sunday may be of the few times this season where they have a talent advantage over their opponent.

The Las Vegas Raiders are arguably an even-more-messy 2-8 team. Vegas is coming off of back-to-back primetime duds -- an ugly, 10-7 loss in a slugfest against Denver two weeks ago, and a non-competitive 33-16 loss to Dallas on Monday night -- and they've also had a loss to Kansas City that featured a historically-bad performance on offense. Year 1 of the Pete Carroll-Geno Smith reunion in Vegas has gone about as poorly as it possibly could.

The state of the Raiders isn't the only thing that provides a little bit of excitement for this Browns game, however. Rookie fifth-round pick Shedeur Sanders is set to start his first-ever NFL game on Sunday. While the young quarterback's first NFL action was fairly ugly last week against Baltimore, he'll come into this weekend's game against the Raiders with his first full week of practice as the starter.

Let's dive into five key matchups to watch in Sunday's game.

Shedeur Sanders vs. Raiders defense

The Raiders' defense has been adequate at times this season, and will be a good test for Sanders in his first career start. Las Vegas has had an above-average defense against the run this season, so if they're able to slow down Quinshon Judkins, then the Browns will need to rely on Sanders to find offensive success.

What has arguably been Sanders' biggest weakness as both a prospect and a pro (so far) is his tendency to take too many ugly sacks. Sanders was sacked on five of his 11 dropbacks during his final preseason showing in August, and in one half of football last week he was sacked twice for a loss of 27 yards. Luckily for Sanders, the Raiders have been unable to get after the quarterback this season, ranking 26th in the league in both sack rate and total team sacks this year. The Browns need to see some reasons for optimism from their young QB room, and Sanders finding a way to stay clean and find a rhythm on Sunday would absolutely provide one.

Myles Garrett vs. Stone Forsythe and DJ Glaze

I'm sure you've heard by now, but Garrett has been on a tear recently. 10 sacks in his last three games, including four last week during the loss to Baltimore. Garrett will get the opportunity to boost his case for winning his second Defensive Player on the Year award on Sunday against a Raiders tackle duo that has been playing some rough football this season.

Starting left tackle Kolton Miller is on injured reserve, and Forsythe has played seven games this season in his place. Forsythe has allowed 19 pressures and four sacks in those seven games, per Pro Football Focus. Glaze, on the other side of the line, has played all ten games for the Raiders, allowing 27 pressures (tied for 12th-most in the NFL among all tackles this year) and five sacks (T-10th-most among tackles.) You can never count on matchups going exactly how you might expect, but don't be surprised if Garrett is able to tee off on this Raiders tackle duo on Sunday.

Cedric Tillman vs. Darien Porter

Tillman tied his season-high in yards last week against the Ravens with 52, and in his third game back from a hamstring injury, he'll have the chance to further build chemistry with his young QB.

Porter, a rookie third-round pick from Iowa State, has seen his snaps tick up considerably after the Raiders' bye week. With starting cornerback Kyu Blu Kelly struggling recently for Vegas, coach Pete Carroll expects Porter to get extensive playing time on Sunday. Porter has allowed zero catches on two targets over his last two games, per PFF.

Carson Schwesinger vs. Brock Bowers

The Browns' rookie second-round pick has blown away the expectations of even those who were most optimistic about him, and is coming off of one of the more impressive games of his rookie campaign. Schwesinger has allowed some catches while in coverage this season (opposing QBs are 21-of-25 targeting him for 264 yards, per PFF), but has also made some splash plays, nabbing his second-career interception last week against the Ravens.

Sunday will be a big test for the rookie. Bowers has eaten opposing linebackers alive in the passing game this season. Three weeks ago, Bowers' 12-catch, 127-yard, three-touchdown performance in the Raiders' overtime loss to the Jaguars featured him catching five of his six targets for 54 yards when matched up against linebacker Foye Oluokun. On Monday night againt Dallas, Bowers caught passes matched up against three different linebackers, and had catches of 15+ yards against both Kenneth Murray and Marist Liufau.

Browns RT vs. Maxx Crosby

The Browns have Garrett, but the Raiders have a pretty great pass-rusher of their own in Maxx Crosby. The four-time Pro-Bowler has recorded six sacks, a pair of forced fumbles, and an interception this season after signing a three-year extension with the Raiders in March. He's on pace to record double-digit sacks for the fourth time in his NFL career. Cleveland will need to contain Crosby if they want to keep their rookie quarterback upright on Sunday.

On the other side, Browns starting right tackle Jack Conklin is questionable with a knee injury. If he can't go, it'll likely be KT Leveston starting in his place, who has struggled in pass protection this season.

This article originally appeared on Browns Wire: Browns vs. Raiders: Five matchups to watch on Sunday