Brock Bowers to Miss 1-2 Games: Fantasy Football Fallout, and More

There was breaking news in the NFL today, so let's discuss that, and then mention a couple other things.

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Bowers to Miss Time

The big news in the NFL on Wednesday was the announcement that Las Vegas Raiders tight end Brock Bowers is set to miss a game or two after undergoing a meniscus trim on Tuesday.

That's a massive deal, as Bowers ended up being the top fantasy tight end drafted this year. He's a major part of the Raiders' offense, and with Ashton Jeanty already banged up, Las Vegas could be down two major offensive assets early on.

With Bowers set to miss a game or two, you can simply place him on an IR spot, if your fantasy league has those. If your league doesn't have those, then you'll need to stash him on the end of your bench, and hope he doesn't miss any additional time.

Bowers missed time a season ago, so this early injury news definitely concerns me a little bit.

With him out, Las Vegas could turn to Michael Mayer or Ian Thomas at tight end. Mayer has delivered at times over his career, and he did with Bowers out a bit last year, so he's the Las Vegas tight end I'd consider adding right now. I'd only want to pick up Mayer in a really deep league though, especially because Bowers is only expected to miss a week or two.

Hopefully Jeanty is able to play, otherwise the Raiders' offense will really be devoid of talent. Rookie Mike Washington Jr. is the backup to Jeanty, and Dylan Laube is RB3 on the team.

Tre Tucker, Jalen Nailor and Jack Bech are the projected starting wide receivers, and they will be asked to do more in the passing game without Bowers around now. Rookie Malik Benson and Dareke Young could also factor in a bit.

Quarterback Kirk Cousins could have a rough time running the offense, especially if Jeanty is out or limited in any fashion. I really would only want to start Jeanty for the team's Week 1 game against the Dolphins, even though that's a favorable matchup. 

Tucker and Nailor become interesting deep-league assets now that Bowers is out, and Mayer also is an option in those leagues.

Again, hopefully Bowers truly only misses a game or two, otherwise the Raiders will really be hurting, and Bowers' fantasy owners will be facing an even steeper uphill climb the longer he is out.

Backup QB News

There's some backup quarterback news that was revealed today. It doesn't have a huge impact on redraft fantasy leagues, but it does impact some dynasty leagues out there.

In Cleveland, Shedeur Sanders is set to back up Deshaun Watson in Week 1. Carson Wentz has leapfrogged J.J. McCarthy for the QB2 role in Minnesota.

Sanders and McCarthy are two young quarterbacks, so even though they aren't starting to open the season, that doesn't bury them for good in dynasty leagues. However, the fact that McCarthy got demoted to QB3 is definitely concerning, and it could mean his time in Minnesota is running out quickly. His dynasty value has plummeted since the Vikings signed Kyler Murray, and it hasn't gotten any better with today's news.

For Sanders, I see him starting in Cleveland in due time, so his dynasty owners might just have to do a little waiting with him. I'd expect him to make several starts for the Browns later this season, so hopefully you get some value out of Sanders in 2026.

Brooks Trending Toward Playing

Carolina Panthers running back Jonathon Brooks was a limited participant in practice on Wednesday, but that's moving in the right direction as Week 1 approaches. Coach Dave Canales said he is “confident” that Brooks will play, so that's another good thing.

If Brooks is active, expect him and Chuba Hubbard to split the Carolina backfield against the Bears. Both would be flex-level options in standard redraft leagues if they both play - they are better deep-league assets though, as we don't know who will lead the way or how many touches each back will get.

Brooks has dealt with injuries his entire NFL career, and a groin injury is what has him limited this week. I'd view him as no more than a flex-level option in standard leagues because of his injury history, as it makes him hard to trust in the long run.

Big-Time Wideouts Tracking Toward Playing

Cincinnati Bengals wideouts Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, plus New York Giants Malik Nabers, all appear to be trending in the right direction as their Week 1 games approach.

Chase has a knee injury, while Higgins has been dealing with a heel ailment. Both are on track to play, according to coach Zac Taylor.

Nabers practiced in full, according to coach John Harbaugh, so he appears like he is heading toward being active in Week 1. He missed most of last season with a torn ACL.

All three are standard league starters when healthy, so this is all good news for fantasy owners. Keep tabs on them all, but we should get to see all three produce in Week 1.