Raiders' Bowers is Already Elite, But Has Room for Improvement

Originally posted on Las Vegas Raiders on SI
By Ezekiel Trezevant | Last updated Jul 2, 2025 5:00 PM ET

Las Vegas Raiders tight end Brock Bowers had the greatest rookie season of any tight end in National Football League history. Still, Heath Cummings of CBS Sports believes Bowers can take another step, even though he is already elite.

"Just because a player was the best at the position last year, it doesn't mean we've seen the best they've to offer. That should seem extremely clear in the case of Brock Bowers. Bowers scored more points than any other tight end in 2024. I expect him to be even better in Year 2," Cummings said.

"Why am I so much higher on Bowers? I think Geno Smith is a pretty big upgrade over Gardner Minshew and Aidan O'Connell. I think Chip Kelly is a pretty big upgrade over Luke Getsy and Scott Turner. I don't see any of the Raiders additions cutting into Bowers' target share. And like McBride, Bowers was due for some pretty significant touchdown regression. He scored just five times on 153 targets last year."

Cummings noted that as great as Bowers was last season, he still has room for improvement in one specific area. Now that the Raiders have an upgraded offense, it will be possible for Bowers to make it happen.

"Over the past 10 years, there have been nine tight end seasons with at least 140 targets, the median touchdown total was nine. McBride and 2024 Evan Engram are the only tight ends to score fewer than Bowers' four last year. If the offense is better as expected, Bowers efficiency is better as expected, and he scores more touchdowns, he is 100% a breakout, no matter how good he was last year," Cummings said.

Shortly after Organized Team Activities, Smith noted how excited he is to play with Bowers, and the rest of the Raiders' skill position players who should make life easier for him and Bowers this upcoming season. It will be difficult for opposing teams to focus primarily on Bowers again.

"I'm loving it They're making my job tremendously easy to be out here with these young, talented players, man. I think we have a really good team, a really good array of weapons, and just a bunch of different guys that can do a lot of great things," Smith said.

"Obviously, Brock [Bowers] is who he is, getting to know Tre [Tucker], getting to know Jakobi [Meyers], and watching Michael [Mayer] go out there and make plays. Ashton [Jeanty] coming along. The offensive line is doing a great job. I think Chip [Kelly] is calling great plays. And it's really easy for me, I just got to go out there and be myself and get the ball into their hands and let them be special."

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This article first appeared on Las Vegas Raiders on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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