When the Las Vegas Raiders drafted tight end Brock Bowers in the 2024 NFL Draft, the idea was that they weren't going to use him as just a traditional in-line tight end. Well, that proved to be the case in his preseason debut on Saturday.
Bowers finished the game with two catches for 25 yards, displaying his yards after catch ability on each play. But the Raiders also showed that they aren't afraid to line him up anywhere on the field.
The first catch saw Bowers line up on the outside and cut across the field to make a grab off a pass from Aidan O'Connell, which was good for 16 yards — his longest gain of the game — and a first down
Brock Bowers' first catch goes for the first down!
— NFL (@NFL) August 10, 2024
📺: #LVvsMIN on @NFLNetwork
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/jPosqvwQsu
Bowers' second reception came from the fullback position. After a play-action fake to him, the Georgia product leaked out into the flat, where O'Connell found him for a nine-yard gain that moved the chains on third down in the red zone.
Bowers likely would've had more if he didn't lose his footing briefly before quickly recovering.
The Raiders lined Brock Bowers up at fullback & threw it to him in the flat.
— Jon Tweets Sports (@jontweetssports) August 10, 2024
I got a little teary-eyed. 🥹 pic.twitter.com/XYCzPD0cIl
Those were the only two targets Bowers received on the afternoon, but head coach Antonio Pierce was impressed.
“I really wanted to get the ball out to Brock, and what we were waiting to see, we saw,” Pierce said after the game, per The Athletic's Vic Tafur. “Run after the catch … it’s all going to be about YAC.”
General manager Tom Telesco received some flak for taking Bowers after he had drafted fellow tight end Michael Mayer in the second round of the 2023 NFL Draft, but clearly there's going to be ample opportunity for both tight ends considering all the ways the Raiders can and will use Bowers.
