With the Las Vegas Raiders‘ wide receiver room being a major question mark, the tight ends are likely to see a lot of targets. Brock Bowers has already cemented himself as arguably the best tight end in the NFL.
He’s going to see a litany of targets this season. He already owns a number of records, but he could be coming for more. The Raiders’ passing offense is going to go through him. Whether it’s Kirk Cousins or Fernando Mendoza starting at quarterback this season, he’ll be the favorite target ot throw to.
Considering the lack of competition, Bowers’ ceiling this season could be historic. NFL.com put together a list of bold predictions for the season, and Matt Okada thinks that Bowers will break the record for most receptions by a player in one season, regardless of position.
“Hold on to your helmets! Bowers is going to break the NFL receptions record, currently set at 149 by Michael Thomas in 2019,” Okada wrote. “Impossible, you say? Bowers already set the rookie receptions record (112) in a season Jakobi Meyers caught 87 passes … with Gardner Minshew, Aidan O’Connell and Desmond Ridder at quarterback. Bring in Kirk Cousins and Fernando Mendoza, and zero high-volume competition at wide receiver, and Bowers will draw an absurd target share and snag a spot in the record books.”
Bowers Could Lead NFL in Catches, Even Without Record
Getting 150 receptions in a season would be an astronomical feat. There’s a reason nobody else has done it. Though Jeremy Bergman wasn’t willing to go as far as Okada, he does think that Bowers could lead the NFL in reception this season.
“This is purportedly the Year of 13 personnel, so you best believe a tight end will lead the league in receptions for the first time since Tony Gonzalez in 2004 and only the second time since Todd Christensen (!) in 1986,” Bergman wrote. “Trey McBride and Bowers have come close in recent years, but this year, Bowers will get it done, serving as Kirk Cousins and Fernando Mendoza’s top pass-catching option amid average receivers.”
Bowers Compared to Jaxon Smith-Njigba
Head coach Klint Kubiak just got a historic season out of Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba. Former Raiders quarterback Derek Carr thinks he’ll get the same out of Bowers.
“I’ve talked a lot about Bowers being used like JSN,” Carr said on “Home Grown.” “… Schematically, [offensive coordinator Andrew Janocko] and Klint are trying to figure out the best way for one, two, and three [options] to be open and how we do that, and who we run off, and who we do this with, and to get this, whatever.
“What does that look like? Bowers, I would assume in 90 percent of these plays is one. If he’s not one and he’s two or three, that’s just trying to save the system or the scheme of the quarterback. Now, with this system and the runs and the play actions and the boots and the screens and all that, you don’t even have time to think, ‘Oh, it’s a drawback. Where’s Bowers?’ They do a good job of mixing it up, but he’s not going to be just an alert on a play.”
Raiders TE Brock Bowers to Break Legendary Record in 2026