The most recent Brock Bowers injury update has left his fantasy football owners scrambling for NFL Week 2. Here’s what to do.
We entered the 2025 fantasy football season with me saying the Tier 1 at the tight end position included just one player — Brock Bowers. Now, after just one game, that one player is at risk of being inactive. As the fantasy gods would have it, the Las Vegas Raiders also play in the final game of the week, leading to delayed news and faster decisions that Brock Bowers’ fantasy football owners must make.
We received multiple injury updates for Bowers on Saturday. Below, we will take a look at the information that is available to us as well as what we should do heading into NFL Sunday.
Brock Bowers Injury Update Week 2
Following the game last week, Bowers gave us an injury update himself. He said he felt good despite not returning to the game. This gave us optimism that holding out the star fantasy football tight end was simply precautionary. Fast forward to the weekend, and we don’t have much more clarity. Unfortunately, what is happening behind closed doors in Vegas is, well… staying in Vegas.
Let’s be honest, there are many fantasy football “doctors” on social media, and most are hilariously bad at what they attempt to do. So, take Deepak Chona’s tweet above with a grain of salt. However, he does typically know what he is talking about. With Bowers, Chona mentioned on Saturday that the data suggests he could miss multiple weeks, given the injury.
At essentially the same time, we received video of a more positive Brock Bowers injury update. This time, we have boots on the ground and a video to prove it, with Bowers returning to practice. So, you’re telling me there’s a chance?
Brock Bowers’ Fantasy Owners Must Prepare
Just because Bowers returned to practice, it does not mean he is a lock to play in the Monday Night Football game. However, returning to practice does give me optimism for Week 3. As for this week, it does feel like a true game-time decision, meaning you may have to make some very tough decisions on Monday morning.
In an ideal world, you will have fellow Raiders tight end Michael Mayer on your bench. Pete Carroll recently spoke of his love for Mayer, and we have seen his potential previously as well. Let’s state the obvious: if Brock Bowers is active for the game, you’re playing him. However, if he is inactive for the game, Mayer certainly has the potential to be a top-10 player at the position with Geno Smith throwing him the ball. So, if you roster Mayer as well, you can watch Sunday’s games knowing you are safe at the position.
However, you may not have Mayer. You may also want to risk it for the Brock Bowers-shaped biscuit. In that case, the good news is that there is a second MNF game before the Raiders, meaning there are more Monday players to choose from. Other tight ends playing on Monday include Cade Otton, Dalton Schultz, Tyler Conklin and Will Dissly. None of these fantasy football TEs are outstanding, so several could be available to pick up right now. However, if Bowers is inactive, I would rank Michael Mayer above them all.
Speaking of my rankings, make sure to check out my Week 2 fantasy football rankings! We will have a big update tomorrow morning, so make sure to check that while setting your lineups!
