Category: Raiders NFL Draft

Raiders rookie TE Brock Bowers named to NFLPA All Pro team

As voted on by the players, Brock Bowers was the best tight end in football in 2024.

Raiders phenomenal rookie TE Brock Bowers was already named to the AFC Pro Bowl team, in what we knew would be the first of many nods of recognition for him.

Wednesday it was the NFLPA’s turn. They released their third-annual Players All Pro team and Bowers made the squad.

He is the only rookie on the team and becomes just the third rookie to ever make the squad.

What makes the NFLPA Players All Pro team unique is its decided by the players themselves.

Bowers was an easy choice, really. He had an historic season by any measure. Including breaking a rookie tight end receiving record that had stood for 63 years, setting a new rookie receptions record (twice) and a new Raiders franchise single-season receptions record (112).

Not to mention — the important part — he led all tight ends this season in receiving (1194). He was unguardable, so whether they asked linebacker, safeties, or cornerbacks, they would all say Bowers was their toughest cover this season.

One Raiders rookie Antonio Pierce thinks is not getting enough mention

The Raiders have found their new right tackle in rookie third round pick DJ Glaze. Antonio Pierce thinks that hasn’t gotten enough notice.

The Raiders have a bonafide Rookie of the Year candidate on their team. Brock Bowers has claimed the spotlight as not only the best rookie on the Raiders, but arguably the top rookie in the league.

After Bowers, it’s second round pick Jackson Powers-Johnson who gets some discussion as he was pegged to be a starter at the beginning of the season and has performed well at both guard and center.

But it’s another offensive lineman with whom Antonio Pierce has been consistently impressed. And in his final press conference of the regular season, he was sure to call attention to him.

“DJ Glaze,” Pierce called out by name. “I’m going to keep talking about him. Just consistent, going back to training camp. It’s just impressive. Blocking Malcolm [Koonce], blocking Maxx Crosby and then going out throughout the season and just be consistent.”

Glaze was the team’s pick in the third round out of Maryland. he was behind Thayer Munford at right tackle throughout the offseason and going into training camp. But when Munford got banged up in camp, Glaze got some reps with the first team and held his own, even against the likes of Crosby.

So, when Munford got injured in week three of the season, the team put in Glaze and never looked back.

Even when Munford recovered and was healthy enough to return to the field, they stayed with Glaze at right tackle.

And in the 13 starts since, Glaze has given up just three sacks. That is impressive for any rookie, let alone a third round pick.

He’s showed he may just be their answer at right tackle moving forward.

Raiders trade massive haul to get No. 1 pick in recent Patriots mock draft

One Patriots writer projects the Raiders will send a serious amount of draft capital to New England to jump up to the number one pick.

The Raiders will have to get a quarterback this offseason. The big question is how aggressive they’re going to be to get one.

I recently suggested the Raiders go after one of the Vikings quarterbacks in trade, sending their top pick and perhaps more to get one of them.

But our friends over at Patriots Wire think the Raiders will go after their QB in the draft and the haul they project the Raiders to give up in order to jump from pick eight to number one is easily the most aggressive I’ve seen.

New England trades: 2025 first-rounder (No. 1)

Las Vegas trades: 2025 first-rounder (No. 8), 2025 second-rounder (No. 39), 2026 first-rounder, 2026 third-rounder, 2027 first-rounder, 2027 third-rounder

That’s right, they see the Raiders giving up six picks including three first rounders (!) to jump up seven spots from eight to one.

The trade, as they see it, is so the Raiders can secure Colorado QB Shadeur Sanders. Though some mock drafts of late actually have Miami’s Cam Ward rated higher.

Regardless of which QB the Raiders would be after, in this imagined trade, the Patriots “stockpile premium assets for future drafts,”

Yeah, to say the least.

The Patriots are in the position where they won’t be looking at getting a quarterback and therefore holding onto the top pick doesn’t carry as much value as trading out of it. But THAT much value??

It remains to be seen if the Patriots will even have the top pick after the season is over. They are set to face the Bills who are expected to rest their starters, so it’s entirely possible the Patriots win and another team lands that top pick. Though the Raiders aren’t one of them. They can do no better than the third overall pick due to their record (4-12) and strength of schedule.

Jalen Milroe declares for 2025 NFL Draft: Could Alabama QB be option for Raiders?

With Alabama QB Jalen Milroe making it official, he immediately becomes a potential option for the Raiders.

The depth at quarterback atop the 2025 NFL Draft got a boost Thursday. Alabama QB Jalen Milroe officially declared for the draft.

BREAKING: Alabama QB Jalen Milroe declares for the NFL Draft.

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— Chris Vannini (@chrisvannini.com) January 2, 2025 at 12:14 PM

The top two quarterbacks in this year’s draft are Miami’s Cam Ward and Colorado’s Shadeur Sanders. Both QB’s are expected to come off the board in the top five, if not the top three. Leaving the teams outside the top 3-5 teams either taking a player at another position or potentially reaching for a quarterback.

The next two QB’s on the board are Milroe and Georgia’s Carson Beck. And there could be as many as five teams seriously considering taking one of them higher than their draft projections suggest.

Among those teams is the Raiders, who currently are in line for the eighth overall pick and whose range is from 3-10, depending on how things go with them and several other teams in the season finale.

In that range, they will have to give someone like Milroe a very hard look.

Milroe was considered one of the top QB prospects in the country following his redshirt sophomore season, but took a step back this past season. So much so, many thought he might return to school to try and raise his stock for the 2026 Draft. But today he decided being an NFL project in this weak QB class was his best option.

For those who think taking Milroe in the top ten is a mistake because it’s a reach, it’s important to remember everyone said the same about Washington’s Michael Penix and Oregon’s Bo Nix.

Penix was taken at eight overall by the Falcons and Nix was take at 12 by the Broncos. Nix went on to have a fantastic season, finishing third in the race for Offensive Rookie of the Year and Penix was named the starter for the Falcons two weeks ago and the Falcons are 1-1 in those games.

That’s not to say Milroe has that kind of potential of either Penix or Nix, but it does suggest that quarterbacks are not to be viewed the same as other positions in draft projections. They are often taken higher than other positions, because if you hit on one, it’s far more impactful than other position hits.

Should historic season for Raiders TE Brock Bowers earn him Offensive Rookie of the Year?

Despite the historic season for Raiders TE Brock Bowers, he is unlikely to win NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year.

By any measure, Brock Bowers is having a truly historic season. Only four rookies have ever had 100 catches or more in a season. And he topped them all.

The first rookie to ever surpass the 100-catch mark was Anquan Boldin baxk in 2003. He had 101 catches that season. Bowers hit that number in 15 games.

Then it was Jaylen Waddle who, in 2021 set the record at 104 catches. It was broken last season by Puka Nacua, but it took Nacua 17 games to do it. He too had 101 after 16 games.

Bowers has 108 catches in 16 games. A tremendous feat by any measure. It also means taking the Raiders franchise record from Darren Waller is also legit.

That’s to say nothing of him breaking the rookie tight end yards mark that stood for 63 years. Mainly because the other records are tops regardless of positions.

Unfortunately for Bowers, his position is going to be the thing that turns all these records into no additions to his trophy case.

Washington QB Jayden Daniels is so far and away the favorite for Offensive Rookie of the Year, BetMGM doesn’t even list it among their odds. And those who do list them still, Bowers is second, but the lines are so sizable, you’d obviously be throwing your money away even placing a bet.

Make no mistake, Daniels is deserving. He’s had a tremendous season, throwing for 3530 yards and rushing for 864 more with 31 combined touchdowns (six rushing) and just nine interceptions. The rushing yards total is a rookie QB record. Breaking the mark set by Robert Griffin III who also won ORoY in 2012.

No matter how many people tout Bowers as their choice for Rookie of the Year, they do so knowing he will go unrecognized among the rookie awards.

Yeah, he’ll be a Pro Bowler. And he may even be an All Pro. He does, after all, lead all NFL tight ends in catches (108) and receiving yards (1144).

The only tight end who might have a case for being selected All Pro over Bowers would be Georgie Kittle who is 65 yards behind him and has four more touchdowns.

And should Bowers land a spot on that team, it would be a big accomplishment and undoubtedly a great honor. But those are not individual awards.

Unlike college, where they have position specific awards — Bowers is the only two-time Mackey Award winner in history — the NFL has only offensive and defensive awards. And the OROY Award ALWAYS goes to either a quarterback, running back, or wide receiver. It has NEVER gone to a tight end.

If there were ever a year for that to change, it would be after the season Bowers is having. But it won’t.

So, enjoy the congrats from your teammates and those balls for the rookie and franchise records you broke this past week, Brock. They are the closest thing to a trophy you’ll receive to recognize your historic season.

Day after Shedeur Sanders shows off Giants cleats, New York drops 3 spots in Draft order

Saturday Shedeur Sanders was showing off New York Giants cleats. Sunday the Giants won and dropped from being in line for the top pick.

Shedeur Sanders may be a bit too much online. A few weeks ago — when the Raiders were in line for the top pick — he was teasing everyone on social media with silver and black stuff and talking about how great Allegiant Stadium is.

Then the Raiders beat the Jaguars in week 16 and dropped out of position for the top pick and were replaced by the New York Giants.

Not coincidentally, on Saturday, Sanders was showing off a pair of red, white and blue New York Giants cleats prior to Colorado facing off against BYU in the Alamo Bowl

The Buffalo would get trounced by the Cougars 34-14, by the way.

The next day, on Sunday, the Giants went out and beat the Colts, dropping New York from their catbird seat in line for the first overall pick all the way to fourth overall, behind the Patriots, Titans, and Browns who all have lower Strength of Schedule than the Giants.

I’m not suggesting Sanders’s teasing is the kiss of death for the team in line for the top pick. But perhaps that he should stop with the teasing and just, you know, go about his business. He might look a bit less foolish. Not to mention like he’s more serious about football than social media or just being taken first overall.

Raiders TE Brock Bowers breaks NFL record that stood for 63 years

Mike Ditka’s rookie tight end receiving yards record stood for 63 years. Today Raiders TE Brock Bowers broke it.

The AFL came into existence in 1960. A year later, tight end Mike Ditka caught 58 passes for 1076 yards. It was an awesome accomplishment at the time, but little did anyone know that 63 years later, that record would still stand.

And now it’s fallen.

In the first quarter of the Raiders week 17 game against the Saints in New Orleans, Brock Bowers ran right past that six-decade old record.

Bowers came into the game needing just 10 yards to hit 1077 yards to rewrite the record books. Averaging over 10 yards per catch on the season, it seemed possible he would break the record on one catch. But it ended up taking three catches for him to do it.

He got the first pass of the day, with the catch going for six yards. Aidan O’Connell went back to him on second down, but he picked up just two yards on the catch, putting him two yards away. Then, finally, late in the second quarter, he got it. Making a 13-yard catch to get the record plus 11 yards.

Bowers now has the rest of this game as well as the season finale next week to add to the record as well as break some other records.

Next up is the rookie receptions record which was set by Puka Nacua last season. The record is 105, and Bowers came into this game needing just five receptions to break it. Which means at the time of this writing, he was two catches away from that record as well.

Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa Doubtful in game with significant top of Draft implications

The Dolphins’ chances of beating the Browns week 17 drop without Tua Tangovailoa in the lineup. And a Browns win would shake up the draft.

Several teams are jockeying for position atop the 2025 NFL Draft as we head into the final two weeks of the 2024 NFL season. Among those are the Cleveland Browns who are tied with five other teams at 3-12 on the season, which is still in range of the top pick.

Along with the Browns, the other four teams are the Patriots, Jaguars, Titans, and Raiders. With the Giants atop the heap with a 2-13 record. Which means a win over the final two games could shake things up considerably atop the draft.

While the fans may be looking to the offseason and thinking of a high draft pick, the players on the field as well as the coaches on the sideline are just thinking about winning the next game. And the Browns’ chances of doing that just went up.

Dolphins starting QB Tua Tagovailoa has been ruled Doubtful for the game. Should he not be able to go, he would be replaced by Tyler Huntley.

Huntley is 4-8 in 12 NFL starts over five seasons with a career passer rating of 78.2. He has thrown nine touchdowns with eight interceptions.

Raiders TE Brock Bowers about to break incredible NFL records

How incredible has Raiders rookie TE Brock Bowers been? He is about to break two NFL rookie records. One has stood for more than six decades

There aren’t many NFL records that have stood for more than 60 years. And when there is one, there’s a good reason it has stood for so long. One such record is the rookie tight end receiving record. It has stood for 63 years. And Brock Bowers is about to break it.

The great Mike Ditka set the record in 1961 when he caught 56 passes for 1076 yards as a rookie with the Chicago Bears.

And no one has approached that record since. Until now.

Currently Bowers is ten yards away from breaking that record. He is averaging 10.6 yards per catch this season which means he could very well break the record on his next catch.

In addition to the rookie tight end receiving yards record, Bowers is five catches from breaking the rookie catches record as well. And I mean at any position. Rams Puka Nacua set the record with 105 catches in 2023. Bowers is averaging 6.7 catches per game this season, including four times making double digit catches. So, he could very well break that record on Sunday as well.

From there, Bowers also has the finale against the Chargers to firmly set the new NFL rookie tight end record as well as the new rookie catches record. Just an incredible season Bowers is having.

Antonio Pierce has message on Raiders win despite draft position drop

For those who were hoping the Raiders would tank, head coach Antonio Pierce has a message — The only thing that matters is winning.

After ten straight losses, the Raiders found themselves in striking distance of the number one overall pick in the draft. Though, to get it, they would have to keep losing.

They didn’t do that Sunday, beating the Jacksonville Jaguars 19-14 to halt the losing streak. On the flip side, the win drops them from being in position for the top pick to facing the sixth overall pick.

While many fans may be thinking about the future and getting a franchise quarterback atop the draft, the players on this team now as well the coaches are not thinking about that at all. They are thinking about the opponent in front of them.

Pierce was asked about what he says to those fans who want the Raiders to lose for draft position, he said “no comment”. But with his next answer, he gave that message.

“Look, we work 80 hours a week. Staff, players come in here 40+ hours to work. We don’t do this to lose,” said Pierce. “We don’t do this for anybody’s fantasy football team or somebody’s draft projections. None of that s–t matters to us. The only thing that matters is winning. And that’s all we want to do.”

So, for the first time since September — a stretch of nearly three months — the Raiders woke up after a win. They may not be celebrating it much being that the season is long since lost, but it’s certainly a better feeling than watching the losses continue to stack up.