Brock Bowers wasted no time proving the Las Vegas Raiders got it right when they took him 13th overall in the 2024 NFL Draft. With Klint Kubiak now the head coach and Kirk Cousins under center, Bowers was expected to be a focal point of the new-look offense.
The former Georgia standout is coming off two seasons that put him among the league’s best young tight ends, with 176 catches for 1,874 yards and 12 touchdowns in 29 games. Last year alone, he hauled in 64 passes on 86 targets for 680 yards and seven touchdowns across 12 games.
That production made him one of the most important building blocks for a Raiders offense still finding its identity under Kubiak.
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Ashton Jeanty and Mike Washington give Cousins options in the backfield, but Bowers’ route-running and reliability in the middle of the field were supposed to be the constant heading into Week 1. But a recent update changed that plan.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Wednesday that Bowers had a meniscus trim Tuesday in Dallas under Dr. Daniel Cooper and is expected to sit out “a game or two.” The tight end reportedly banged up his knee “a little in camp,” and once the issue was diagnosed last week, surgery quickly followed.
The Raiders signed him to a four-year, $17,768,222 deal that included a $9,742,343 signing bonus. It’s the second straight knee issue in as many years for Bowers, tough timing for a Raiders team already thin at pass-catcher.
He still needs 46 catches to pass Trey McBride’s 221 for the most receptions by a tight end through three NFL seasons, and just 13 more to top Jason Witten’s 188 for the most catches by a tight end before turning 24.
The Raiders open their 2026 NFL regular season at home at Allegiant Stadium against the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, September 13, 2026.
