The unsaid reason the Raiders are ending Brock Bowers’ season with injury update

Brock Bowers has been playing through a knee injury for most of the season.

The Las Vegas Raiders' second-year TE was hurt in Week 1, missed some time and since has grinded through it on the field.

He won't play the last two weeks of the season, though. The Raiders placed Bowers on Injured Reserve on Wednesday, ending his 2025 campaign.

Bowers ends his year having played in 12 games and totaled 64 catches for 680 yards and seven touchdowns, a far cry from his rookie season (112 for 1,194).

Injuries didn't help the cause. There's also potentially another reason the Raiders have chosen this moment to sit Bowers.

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Why did the Raiders put Brock Bowers on IR now?

The key, aside from whatever pain Bowers is dealing with, is the Week 17 game on the Raiders' schedule: the New York Giants.

It's the battle for the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.

Whichever team loses will hold the top spot heading into Week 18, and will need just a loss in that final week to secure the first overall pick.

Bowers is an immensely talented player, and if there was ever a guy who might have a huge game and lead his team to a win against a bad defense like the Giants, it'd be Bowers.

The Raiders couldn't tell Bowers to play at less than full throttle. But procedurally, placing him on IR avoids that problem altogether.

Michael Mayer will be a capable fill-in as TE1, but he's no Bowers, and the Raiders have taken one step closer to that first pick.

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