MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — The secret to exploiting the Miami Dolphins’ defense is to either have a mobile quarterback or a dynamic tight end.
In Week 11, the Las Vegas Raiders had option No. 2. Rookie tight end Brock Bowers was the entirety of the Raiders’ offense.
And while it wasn’t good enough to win on this day, his organization should take comfort in knowing that Bowers should help the Raiders win plenty of games if surrounded by a higher degree of competence.
Raiders’ Brock Bowers Lights Up Miami Dolphins
Bowers on Sunday went for 13 catches on 16 targets, 126 yards, and one touchdown in a 34-19 loss to the Dolphins.
Bowers was a handful for the Dolphins’ defense in general, but Jordan Poyer in particular.
Brock Bowers TD!#RaiderNation | #RatedRookie
— The Draft Network (@TheDraftNetwork) November 17, 2024
Bowers’ touchdown, a 23-yard catch-and-run, only happened because Poyer whiffed on an open-field tackle. To be fair, Bowers has a good 40 pounds on Poyer, but his speed and elusiveness Sunday were as much of a problem for the Dolphins as his power.
He was a big reason (literally) the Raiders converted eight of 14 third-down tries.
“We’ve been really good on third down and get[ting] off the field,” said Dolphins defensive lineman Calais Campbell. “Today they had a really good game plan and they made some plays to keep those drives alive and made it tough on us. But we just kept fighting, kept believing and found a way to win a ball game.
“But you’ve got to take your hat off to them. They had a really good game plan. That Bowers kid, that boy is good.”
Added Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel: “I was very happy with the fact that more often than not, even when they were driving, we kept them out of the end zone and had several, or we had a couple, four-point plays that helped the score be what it was. We had some tackling issues.
“Bowers, he’s legit. We knew coming out of the draft, we were very high on him, and he didn’t disappoint. He’s going to be a player that everybody knows for years to come, in my opinion.”
The reality is, Sunday was no one-off for the Dolphins.
Bowers’ performance, which gave him the league lead among rookies in catches (70) and receiving yards (706), didn’t occur in a vacuum.
It came three weeks after the Cardinals’ Trey McBride roasted them for 124 yards on nine catches.
Whatever Anthony Weaver’s plan is at that position, it needs revision — fast.