Following the NFL Draft, Brock Bowers and the Raiders reach a $18.1 million deal

In the next season, the Las Vegas Raiders want to return to contention. Stars like Maxx Crosby and the coaching staff already fully back Antonio Pierce. Their offensive problems still need to be fixed, and they began this offseason. The front staff added further reinforcements in the NFL Draft and acquired several quality players through free agency. One of them, Georgia tight end Brock Bowers, may even be their long-term answer at the position.

It’s official! Brock Bowers is here to stay as a member of the Raiders offense, per Ari Meirov of The 33rd Team. The team’s NFL Draft pick from the Georgia Bulldogs just inked a four-year deal that guarantees him $ 18.1 million. Other inclusions to his contract are a $10 million signing bonus alongside a fifth-year team option.

This is just the first part of Antonio Pierce’s plan to reinvigorate the Raiders offense. So far, their pass-catcher squad is looking elite. Their team has Davante Adams, Jakobi Meyers, Jalen Guyton, and Michael Mayer among others. Their rushing weapons are also looking deadly with Zamir White and Alexander Mattison leading the depth chart.

Furthermore, the Raiders offense can only be as good as their trenches. The squad knows this and notched some key additions in those spots as well. Jackson Powers-Johnson, DJ Glaze, Will Putnam, Jake Johanning, and Clark Barrington are some big names out of college who can produce for this squad and protect their quarterback.

Speaking of the signal-caller position, the Raiders still have a conundrum they have to solve. They just landed Gardner Minshew while also retaining Aidan O’Connell. The addition of Carter Bradley through the NFL Draft makes the situation unclear. Nonetheless, these quarterbacks will have elite weapons to hand the ball off to or make long pass plays with.

With Bowers, what do the Raiders get?

Although he won’t solve the Raiders’ patchy offensive line, he can serve as their cornerstone going forward. In Georgia, he excelled at this particular task. He is a jack of all crafts, whether it is racing through the seam for an easy checkdown, blocking for a running back, or making room in the pocket for his signal caller.

The Raiders’ NFL Draft pick also produced good numbers throughout college. He has sticky hands and clearly knows how to play the passing game well. This notched him 2,538 receiving yards on 175 recpetions. To put it into perspective, Bowers got the Bulldogs an average gain of 14.5 yards per catch which is almost always a first down. Clearly, he is also very lethal in catching passes in the end zone. This is why, despite heavy coverages, he got 26 total touchdowns too.

Moreover, his ability to carry the ball and get the offense going is also outstanding. Bowers may have only rushed 19 times throughout college but he makes sure that every movement counts. He got Georgia 10.2 yards per rush on those meager attempts and even ran to the end zone five times.

Antonio Pierce and the Raiders have signed a foundational piece to what could be a Super Bowl-winning core. Hopefully, it pays off.