You know Brock Bowers is good when he's already making history before Raiders training camp has even started.
Going into Year 2 of the Bowers experience, it was always going to be interesting to see where preseason rankings and lists had him. He had a rookie season for the ages, but has the unfortunate distinction of playing in the same division as Travis Kelce – he was never going to get the attention he deserved.
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So you'll be pleasantly surprised to hear that ... ESPN gave him the attention he deserves! It truly may be a new day in the AFC West. In their on-going series that ranks the Top 10 players at each position – based on anonymous feedback from NFL execs, coaches, and scouts – ESPN has tons of nice things to say about Bowers. And that's probably putting it lightly.
ESPN has fully embraced the Brock Bowers hype heading into 2025
"Bowers makes history in our Top 10 poll -- he's the first player to rank No. 1 at his position after his rookie year. From Joe Burrow to Justin Jefferson and Sauce Gardner, many came close but couldn't quite pull off the feat. Bowers, however, narrowly outdistanced Kittle in the polls after earning more than 50% of the first-place votes. He was the highest-graded overall player in the 2024 draft in the eyes of some NFL scouts, but the position he plays, coupled with a strong quarterback draft, dropped him to the No. 13 pick. Sure, the Raiders needed a quarterback in the worst way, but there's no way they regret the selection of Bowers, who met expectations, then smashed them. Among his Year 1 records: most receiving yards by a rookie tight end in NFL history (1,194), most receptions by a rookie at any position (112) and most receptions by any player in a single season in Raiders history. "Great person, hard worker, instinctive, great hands, matchup problem due to his speed and athleticism with elite [run after catch] ability," an NFC executive said. Added an NFL coordinator: "He sort of just floats around out there. Game comes naturally to him."
History! I wonder if the Raiders plan to raise a banner for having the first player to rank No. 1 at his position in ESPN's annual Top 10 rankings after his rookie year. (I would.) Seeing him listed with guys like Burrow, Jefferson, and Gardner really is the cherry on top – Bowers is a certified star, now confirmed by ESPN. Imagine what he'll look like with an actual quarterback.