Who Should I Start? Brian Thomas Jr. or Brock Bowers

Friday, September 4, 7:09 PM

Las Vegas Raiders tight end Brock Bowers is likely headed for an enormous target share in 2026. Injuries and subpar quarterback play limited Bowers to just 64 catches, 680 yards, and seven touchdowns last year. However, he had 112 catches on 153 targets as a rookie in 2024, and he's looking to get back to that level of volume this year. The good news is that he's fully healthy and got a quarterback upgrade this offseason, as the Raiders moved on from Geno Smith. Kirk Cousins will lead the offense for now, and we know that he's capable of elevating his tight ends to the next level. After Cousins took over the Falcons' offense last year, tight end Kyle Pitts averaged 8.0 targets, 0.6 touchdowns, and 16.3 fantasy points per game. That should be Bowers' floor, and his ceiling is significantly higher. There's a legitimate chance that Bowers will finish as the overall TE1 this year if he stays healthy for all 17 games. For now, he has an ADP of 19.8, which corresponds to the second round of fantasy drafts and makes him the first tight end off the board.