The NFL season is underway, which means that, unfortunately, injuries are rearing their ugly heads. As fantasy football managers prepare to set Week 2 lineups, it’s important to stay informed on the latest injury news. Brock Bowers suffered a knee injury in Week 1’s win over New England. What is the Las Vegas Raiders tight end dealing with, and is he in jeopardy of missing this week’s game?
Is Brock Bowers Playing Week 2?
Bowers has a knee injury that is reportedly minor, though his practice status has raised concerns about his Week 2 availability. The injury occurred in the third quarter of Sunday’s season opener when he took a hit to the side of his knee from Patriots safety Craig Woodson after making a 38-yard catch.
The Raiders tight end did not practice Thursday or Friday this week due to the knee issue. If he doesn’t practice Saturday, he’s almost certainly not going to play against the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday Night Football. However, Bowers can go DNP-DNP-LP and still play, though that would be cutting it extremely close.
Head coach Pete Carroll said Thursday he expects Bowers to play, telling reporters that both Bowers and linebacker Elandon Roberts “think they’re playing” and that they “look fine” in walkthroughs. “I would expect before the week is over that they would [practice],” Carroll added.
It’s important to remember that Carroll is notoriously unreliable when it comes to injury predictions. The veteran coach has a history of providing optimistic injury updates that don’t always materialize into game-day availability, making his assessments less trustworthy than those of other coaches around the league.
Bowers himself struck a cautious tone when speaking to reporters Thursday. “I’m not sure. We’ll see how it’s feeling throughout the week, but I’m hoping to play,” he told ESPN’s Ryan McFadden. This uncertainty from the player himself suggests the injury may be more significant than initially believed.
Brock Bowers –
Getting a lot of questions on him.
Seen here wearing a brace on his Left knee (concern in injury video was left PCL).
I lean towards him not playing Wk2 but we’ll need Jay Glazer intel on this one.
LVR plays Monday so plan as if he’s OUT for now. pic.twitter.com/0YZAvwluCq— Jeff Mueller, PT, DPT (@jmthrivept) September 12, 2025
The good news for Las Vegas is that Monday’s game gives them an extra day compared to the typical Sunday schedule, providing additional time for Bowers to recover and potentially practice on Saturday. Any participation in Saturday’s session would be viewed as a positive sign for his availability.
Saturday Afternoon Update: Bowers practiced on Saturday, albeit with a brace. He is trending towards playing.
Raiders HC Pete Carroll said TE Brock Bowers (knee) practiced today, “looked terrific”, and is expected to play Monday night versus the Chargers.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 13, 2025
Bowers’ Fantasy Football Outlook
If you’re reading this, you’re aware of what Brock Bowers is — a machine. We’ve seen him on the professional stage 18 times, and he’s already hit 90 receiving yards seven times.
For context, Justin Jefferson, Puka Nacua, and Ja’Marr Chase all had seven such stat lines through their first 18 career games. In fact, since 2000, Odell Beckham and Victor Cruz are the only players to top seven in that very niche stat that you can now flaunt at your Week 2 watch party.
MORE: Free Fantasy Football Start/Sit Optimizer
I’m not worried about the knee injury he seemed to pick up late last week, nor am I concerned about Michael Mayer earning a red-zone target. For me, Mayer is Tyler Allgeier to Bowers’ Bijan Robinson, case closed.
You spent up at the position this summer to have a built-in edge every week over your league. While Geno Smith may not be a perfect quarterback, he certainly looked comfortable funneling the targets where they needed to go in this offense, and that’s all you care about.
Bowers had eight-plus targets in both Charger games last season, and I’d be surprised if he doesn’t make it three-for-three in that regard this week.
— Kyle Soppe, PFSN Fantasy Analyst
