Brock Bowers was added to the injury report with an illness on Sunday morning ahead of the Raiders’ showdown with the Chiefs. The tight end is still expected to play, but Las Vegas may need some of his teammates to pick up the slack.
Bowers returned in Week 3 and dominated with 10 catches for 116 yards and a touchdown against the Saints. He stepped into the lead role in the Raiders’ passing game. With the running game struggling, he was far and away the key to the offense.
If he is hampered at all by his sudden illness, the offense could suffer.
Michael Mayer
The Raiders’ backup tight end got a big payday before the season started. Las Vegas decided to make Michael Mayer a top-five paid tight end in the NFL. Despite that deal, Mayer has never proven himself as a good receiving tight end.
Mayer has never put up 400 yards in a single season. Plus, through three games this season, he has just 87 yards. The decision to hand him such a large deal still looks puzzling.
But if Bowers is limited at all, Mayer will need to take on some of the work in the passing game.
Ashton Jeanty
Ashton Jeanty can help mitigate any Bowers absence in two areas. First off, he can produce on the ground and keep the offense from needing to air it out as much. But so far this season Jeanty has been awful as a runner. He is looking even worse than last season, when he was one of the least efficient running backs in the NFL.
But when Bowers missed the first two games of the season, Jeanty was a big part of the passing game. He caught 10 passes on 13 targets for 60 yards and two touchdowns before Bowers returned in Week 3.
Jeanty will always see plenty of touches, but that number could rise if Bowers is watching from the sideline more than expected.
Jalen Nailor
The Raiders have yet to see the Jalen Nailor signing pay off. Nailor signed a three-year deal in the offseason to be the Raiders’ second wide receiver. But through three games he has five catches for 52 yards.
Six different Raiders have caught a touchdown pass this season. Nailor is not one of them. Las Vegas needs to see some sort of production from their offseason addition.
