The Raiders have a key divisional matchup coming with the Chargers on Monday and it’s starting to sound like All Pro tight end Brock Bowers might not be available for the game.
There were multiple reports after Sunday’s game suggesting Bowers’ knee was not a major concern but based on the way the team handled him in the sideline, there definitely seemed to be more going on than what reached the public after the game.
The official message was that Bowers would have been available if the team needed him, but how much closer could Sunday’s game have been in the final minutes?
It seemed obvious from the outside that he simply wasn’t able to return to the game because of his knee.
On Thursday, Bowers addressed his injury with members of the media, and he didn’t sound like a player that was close to full strength.
“I’m feeling a little better. Just working on it, trying to get it right. We’ll see how we’re feeling,” Bowers said.
Asked by Raider Nation Radio host Q Myers if he was expecting to play on Monday, Bowers didn’t offer a particularly encouraging answer.
“I’m not sure. We’ll see,” Bowers said. “We’ll see how it’s feeling throughout the week, but I’m hoping to play.”
Myers talked on the Locked on Raiders podcast about Bowers on Friday and he didn’t come away feeling like Bowers is going to play on Monday.
“All the reports coming out of [the Patriots] game was that he would be fine to go back into the game if they really needed him. They held him out for precautionary purposes. But seeing the compression sleeve on his leg, the entire leg on Thursday inside the Raiders locker room, definitely had cause for a concern,” Myers said.
“To me, I walked away from [Bowers comments] feeling like, ‘Yeah, it doesn’t sound like he’s going to go.’ That’s just my gut feeling. Nobody’s telling me that. That’s just based off of Vinny [Bonsignore] asking about his knee and me asking, do you expect to play? And again, when he says he’ll see, you know, obviously he wants to be out there… He wanted to be out there on Sunday, but it really doesn’t sound like he’s going to play. He was very hesitant to say that he’s going to play.”
The good news for Bowers is that he gets an additional day of rest this week with the game on Monday night.
But if it’s a matter of his long-term availability for the season, the Raiders are probably going to be inclined to play it safe and hold Bowers out this week.
If Bowers doesn’t play against the Chargers, the Raiders are one of the few teams that don’t have a massive drop off at the position with their no. 2 tight end.
Former second-round pick Michael Mayer had four receptions against the Patriots on Sunday, and he would be considered a starting tight end for a lot of teams around the league.
Mayer was at the center of offseason trade rumors, but the team’s decision to keep him paid off in week 1 and could pay off even more on Monday.
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It’s a little Raider goggles on full blast to say would definitely be a starting TE on most teams. The guy was on his last NFL legs going into the off-season. 4 receptions doesn’t make you bona-fide starter
He would start on most teams.