NFC team made Raiders trade offer for Brock Bowers

For those who still question the Las Vegas Raiders' Brock Bowers selection, it is important to acknowledge that Bowers was seen as a once-in-a-generation talent at tight end and was projected as highly as third overall in some early mock drafts. A plethora of QB-needy teams toward the top of the board caused him to fall a bit in the draft process, however, as draft night unfolded, Bowers became a hot commodity once again. Many projected him to land with the Jets at No. 10 and others tried to trade up for him. Obviously, he landed with Las Vegas at pick No. 13, but it was almost out of the Raiders’ control.

What we know

During an episode of Roku Channel's NFL Draft: The Pick Is In, it was revealed that the Los Angeles Rams were eyeing the New York Jets’ 10th overall pick. The initial assumption was that the Rams wanted a certain TE from Georgia at No. 10. However, the Jets ended up flipping picks with the Vikings, who had the 11th pick, and the Jets acquired picks Nos. 129 and 157 in addition, only relinquishing pick 203. 

But Sean McVay would not quit. He wanted to move up in the draft, and he was targeting Brock Bowers. This time, McVay and company offered the Jets their first, second, and third-round picks for that 11th overall pick, but instead, the Jets elected to stay put and draft Olu Fashanu, a tackle from Penn State. The Jets needed to bolster their offensive line and did not want to move back as far as No. 19 because there were multiple teams who needed a tackle in that range. At No. 12, the Broncos selected Bo Nix, as expected, and Brock Bowers fell into the Raiders’ lap at No. 13. 

The Jets were smart to snag a tackle at No. 11 because Joe Alt and JC Latham had already been selected, and had they made the trade and waited until No. 19, another two tackles would have dropped off the board. There was also a sentiment that the Raiders could be targeting a tackle at No. 13, but instead, we went with the best player available. Rams general manager Les Snead did make a last-ditch effort to try and trade up to No. 13 with the Raiders.

Los Angeles offered No. 19 and No. 52 to move up to No. 13. Even though tight end wasn't a need, the Raiders decided to stay put and take Bowers, which shows how much they valued him.

The Rams ended up staying put at No. 19 and selected DE Jared Verse from Florida State. 

It speaks volumes to the kind of player that Bowers is that a well-managed team like the Rams was willing to wager multiple draft picks on his talents. The fact that we were able to draft a player