Brock Bowers Fantasy Overview

2025 Role & Results

Production & Fantasy Finishes

Bowers racked up 64 catches, 680 yards, and 7 TDs in 12 games last season. His 4.9 catches per game ranked second among TEs; his 56.7 yards per game ranked third.

Bowers finished fourth in both PPR and half-PPR points per game, a little behind his expected TE2 finish. Notably, 24.8% of his PPR points came in one game vs. Jacksonville (12-127-3).

Overall, Bowers turned in four top-6 fantasy finishes, plus two weeks at TE7 and one at TE11. He ranked TE14 or worse in five games.

Usage & Role

Bowers ranked second among TEs with a 21.7% target share and 6.9 targets per game.

That usage held up in the red zone, where Bowers saw a huge 42.5% target share. He also finished second in end-zone targets (12), despite missing five games.

Efficiency & Regression

Bowers’ efficiency probably wasn’t as strong as you’d expect, and the injury section helps explain why.

Among 49 TEs with 30+ targets, Bowers ranked:

• seventh in fantasy points per route run
• 11th in yards per route run
• 12th in targets per route run
• 17th in yards per target
• 17th in catch rate
• 29th in yards after catch per reception

He ranked just 20th out of 50 TEs in ESPN’s Open Score, a measure of how well a player creates separation.

Offensive Context

The Raiders produced a poor environment for fantasy production.

Vegas QBs paired a fine 66.0% completion rate with only 6.5 yards per attempt (27th league-wide) and 169.5 yards per game (28th).

OC Chip Kelly -- who was fired after 11 games -- led a unit that ranked fourth in pass rate but 29th in situation-neutral pace, 32nd in scoring, and 32nd in total plays.

Historical Production & Trends

Don’t let the injury-disrupted season erase what Bowers did as a rookie.

In 2024, he posted rookie TE records for PPR points (262.7), catches (112), and receiving yards (1,194). The massive season came with a shaky QB situation that included nine starts from Gardner Minshew, seven from Aidan O’Connell, and one from Desmond Ridder.

Injury History & Durability

Injuries crushed Bowers’ chance at repeating his 2024.

A knee issue popped up in Week 1, and Bowers played through it for the next four weeks before it was identified as a left PCL injury and a bone bruise.

“I want to be back to going full speed, being able to separate from guys,” Bowers said in early October. “I feel like I can’t really do that to the best of my abilities right now.”

Bowers returned for Week 9 and exploded for a 12-127-3 line vs. the Jags. He stayed on the field through Week 16, when the Raiders placed him on injured reserve with another knee issue. There’s no indication of a setback, with reporter Tom Pelissero saying the move was made to get Bowers “100% in 2026.”

2026 Opportunity & Projection

Projected Role & Competition

Expect Bowers’ elite usage to continue, with Jalen Nailor, Tre Tucker, and Jack Bech forming a shaky WR group around him.

Nailor signed a three-year deal with $23 million in guarantees. That suggests the Raiders plan to start him, but he spent four seasons as the No. 3 or 4 WR in Minnesota behind Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, and Adam Thielen. Nailor set career highs last year with just 29 catches and 444 yards.

Tucker looks more like a role player than an every-down starter, even after a career-best 2025 (57-696-5). The 5’8, 192-pounder posted poor per-route efficiency and drew just 17.9% of Raiders targets despite Jakobi Meyers’ midseason departure, Bowers missing five games, and the rest of the WRs contributing little.

Bech brought promise as a Round 2 pick last year, but he managed only 20 catches in 16 games.

The Raiders also return former Round 2 TE Michael Mayer, whose 44.4% route rate could climb. New HC Klint Kubiak leaned into two-TE sets in Seattle last year, ranking eighth in the league at 30%. His 2024 Saints offense ranked sixth at 30.5%.

Mayer has a path to snaps when Bowers aligns off the line. But that’s more of a formation wrinkle than a real threat to Bowers, who should contend for the league lead in TE targets.

Supporting Cast

Kubiak said in March that “ideally,” he wouldn’t have to start top pick Fernando Mendoza right away. We’ll see how long that lasts.

Kirk Cousins could start into midseason and at least brings familiarity with Kubiak. They spent three seasons together in Minnesota, including a strong 2021 campaign with Kubiak calling plays. Cousins threw for 4,221 yards, 33 TDs, and just 7 INTs that year, topping league average in both completion rate (66.3%) and yards per attempt (7.5).

But Cousins has looked like a QB in decline since leaving Minnesota. He managed only 6.4 yards per attempt for last year’s Falcons, ranking 31st among 33 qualifiers in on-target throw rate.

We’re not downgrading Bowers because of Cousins. The TE has already shown he can produce at an elite level through bad QB play, and the team will surely shift to Mendoza if Cousins truly struggles.

Coaching & Offensive Scheme

Kubiak clearly thinks highly of Bowers after calling him a “football robot from heaven” in May.

“We gotta get the most out of Brock,” Kubiak continued. “Wherever he goes, he’s been successful: in college, in high school … whoever’s coached him … can’t say enough good things about him. Love his work ethic. He’s a standard bearer.”

Kubiak’s three stops as an OC have produced finishes of 30th (2025), 25th (2024), and 21st (2021) in pass rate over expected. That might be concerning for an average starting TE, but there’s no question Bowers will be featured in this passing game.

Paths to Ceiling

It starts with good health after Bowers’ injury-impacted 2025. The good news is he participated in OTAs, and there’s been no talk of managing his prior knee issue.

No matter who starts at QB, Bowers should finish first or second at the position in targets, giving him an elite ceiling. Our projections peg him for 8.0 targets per game, second among TEs behind Trey McBride.