When the Raiders draft Lynn Bowden with the No. 80 pick in the 2020 draft, it was a bit surprising to hear commissioner Roger Goodell announce him as a “running back.” The pick itself wasn’t a shocker, but his position was.
During Bowden’s college career, he played mostly as a receiver until he was forced to move to the quarterback positional for the final eight games of his career. Bowden finished his college career in 114 receptions for 1,303 yards and six touchdowns.
While it would appear the wide receiver is his best spot in the NFL, the Raiders will start him out as a running back to get him on the field more often. In a recent article on ESPN, general manager Mike Mayock talked about Bowden being involved in the offense as a pass-catcher:
“In the SEC two years ago, he caught 60-70 passes as a slot [receiver]. Last year, as you guys know, he was quarterback/wildcat … we think he’s one of the most athletic, tougher guys in this year’s draft. We’re going to train him to be running back. If he’s able to do that job, we’ll be able [to] do some other things with him — move him around, let him catch the football.”
Because of Bowden’s size (5’11, 204 pounds), he does appear to fit better as a running back. However, don’t expect him to be used as a traditional running back in any sense of the word. According to Mayock, Bowden will be used in the “Joker” role in the offense.
What that exactly means remains to be seen, but look for Bowden to get snaps at running back, slot receiver, kick returner, and even quarterback in Jon Gruden’s offense. But the goal appears to be simple for Gruden; get the ball into the hands of No. 33.
Look for the Raiders to ease Bowden into his role on offense in 2020, likely playing him solely as a running back to start the year. But given just how dynamic and versatile he has shown to be, expect the Raiders to continue to add more to his plate as the season goes along.
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