The Raiders earned a first-and-goal from the 4-yard line in the final minutes of a Week 7 game at the Los Angeles Rams, and it was no secret who they would go to for a potential game-tying touchdown.
Pressure forced quarterback Gardner Minshew to throw away a first-down pass attempt but, sure enough, on second and third downs, he targeted rookie tight end Brock Bowers. The first-round, No. 13 overall pick out of the University of Georgia had multiple defenders covering him, so the plays were ultimately unsuccessful and the Raiders questionably settled for a field goal.
“I have to come down with it no matter what,” Bowers said at his locker after the eventual 20-15 loss. “That’s on me.”
But nothing about the Raiders’ underwhelming and likely worsening 2-5 start to the season is truly on Bowers. “[He’s] been a bright spot for us each and every week,” said Raiders coach Antonio Pierce.
And his performance may only get brighter given the state of the Raiders’ receiving corps going into a Week 8 game against the archrival, back-to-back Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs at 1:25 p.m. Sunday afternoon at Allegiant Stadium.
With Davante Adams traded to the New York Jets and Jakobi Meyers having missed the last two games with an ankle injury, Bowers is the only Raiders pass-catcher who’s shown an ability to get open consistently.
Las Vegas isn’t hiding the fact that the 21-year-old who grew up in Napa, California — where he once visited Raiders’ training camp as a child — is the new focal point of its offense.
“He’s always in the right place doing what he’s supposed to do,” Minshew said. “We’re putting a lot on him for a rookie, too. Hats off to him. Super happy to have him on our team and excited for what he’s going to be.”
The ceiling seems unlimited for Bowers after setting career-highs with 10 receptions for 93 receiving yards against the Rams. He’s running away from his teammates with a team-high 47 catches for 477 receiving yards.
The former total is an NFL rookie record through seven games while the latter is second all-time and seven yards behind what Atlanta’s Kyle Pitts put up in 2021.
Bowers had been ahead of Pitts after previous weeks, and seems to assault NFL and Raiders record books on a game-by-game basis.
He’s the first rookie tight end in 10 years, and fourth all-time, to have 10 catches in a game. He easily broke Amari Cooper’s record of 38 receptions for the most in Raiders’ history by a player in his first seven games.
“He’s already one of the best tight ends in the league, I think,” Raiders edge rusher and team leader Maxx Crosby said. “He catches everything, runs through tackles, makes people miss. He’s a complete package. I love that he’s on our team.”
Most importantly for Raiders fans, Bowers should be on the team for years to come. That might be in doubt for everyone else on the roster given how far south the team’s fifth season in Las Vegas has trended.
Las Vegas already sits in last of the AFC West by two games with a -59 point differential, the third-worst mark in the league behind the New England Patriots (-70) and the Carolina Panthers (-177).
And Carolina’s lone win of the season came in a 36-22 victory at Las Vegas in Week 3.
The Raiders have been so uncompetitive that there’s chatter around the league about whether the team would be willing to part with any other veterans ahead of the trade deadline on Nov. 5 in exchange for future assets.
Most of the speculation has revolved around Crosby, who could potentially fetch a first-round pick in return, even though both he and the team have said they aren’t interested in parting ways.
Raiders general manager Tom Telesco probably isn’t shopping around anyone else on the roster, but there are few players with long-term futures secured in silver and black. Bowers might stand alone as someone Las Vegas is undeniably building around as it enters what’s beginning to feel like a new age for the franchise.
The other 31 NFL owners approved seven-time Super Bowl winning quarterback Tom Brady as a Raiders’ minority owner at their annual meetings Oct. 15 in Atlanta. Brady has already been around the team’s Henderson headquarters with his influence expected to show going into next season.
His first act of business might be helping to select the right quarterback in the 2025 NFL Draft. Las Vegas needs a passer that can get the ball to Bowers more seamlessly than the team’s middling current options of Minshew and second-year quarterback Aidan O’Connell.
“I can get better at everything,” Bowers said of his future. “Every week it starts to slow down, and I hope that just continues.”
Pierce loves that approach out of Bowers, who holds himself to unreasonably high standards. He took blame for not scoring a touchdown late against the Rams even though he had no realistic opportunity.
Minshew’s second-and-goal pass was thrown right into the hands of a defender and almost intercepted before it ever reached Bowers. The rookie caught the third-and-goal pass but two defenders were right on top of him to combine for a no-gain, gang-tackle.
Bowers’ lone muted statistic is that he has scored only one touchdown, but he’s about to get a lot more chances. The Raiders have few other places to turn.
“We’re trying to feature him and get him going,” Pierce said. “He’s doing the best he can and does a lot of good things for us, but obviously, it couldn’t just be the Brock Bowers show because that’s not helping us win right now.”
