HENDERSON, Nev. -- Las Vegas Raiders star tight end Brock Bowers is questionable to play this week against the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, coach Klint Kubiak announced Friday.
Bowers missed the first two weeks of the regular season due to a knee injury. He underwent surgery on the knee before the season started to get it "cleaned up," per Kubiak. Bowers returned to practice last Friday and pushed to play in the team's Week 2 win over the Los Angeles Chargers, going through a pregame workout with much of the Raiders coaching staff and front office watching. Kubiak said postgame that Bowers was "very close" to playing, but the team ultimately exercised caution.
Bowers participated in each of the team's first two practices this week in a limited capacity, but was not present during the portion of Friday's session open to the media.
Las Vegas has gotten off to an improbable undefeated start without its best offensive player. Kubiak's scheme hasn't been as potent as he might like, ranking 18th in the NFL with -0.07 offensive EPA per play. But the team has been able to make due, putting up 26.5 points per game, tied for 10th-best in the league.
The Raiders made up for Bowers' absence in two completely different ways across their wins. In their season-opening victory over the Miami Dolphins, the Raiders relied on their running backs to pace the offense. Ashton Jeanty and Mike Washington Jr. were responsible for 188 of its 290 total yards, and Jeanty caught two of the Raiders' three touchdowns.
The Chargers handled Jeanty last week, as he posted just 63 total yards on 25 touches and no scores. But the focus on the backfield let the Raiders open their perimeter passing game, as Kirk Cousins was 11-for-16 passing for 204 yards, three touchdowns and an interception when targeting his receivers. Wideouts amassed more than two-thirds of the team's offensive output to help give the Raiders their first 2-0 start since 2021.
"I think it gives everybody confidence that everybody can go in, do their job in the way we see fit," offensive coordinator Andrew Janocko said of the team's success without Bowers. "That they can go in, they can play different guys, can play different positions. We can maximize different skill sets in different ways and execute the offense."
If Bowers can play, his presence will further help the Raiders maximize their production. If not, Las Vegas has confidence it can continue to have offensive success without him.
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
