Is Brock Bowers worth a top ten for the 2024 NFL Draft?

[WNY_FOOTBALL_DUDE]

Next week I will be doing per position. Covering the top ten prospects now. Lets talk about Brock Bowers.

Basic information
- He's 21 years old. Will be 22 next December.
- 6'4, 240 pounds
- Played for the Georgia Bulldogs, when they won back-to-back National Championships
- Won the John Mackey Award in 2022 and 2023
- In his last 25 starts, he's scored 17 touchdowns, and averaged 14 yards per reception.
- CBS Sports has him as the 4th best player in the draft and #1 tight end prospect. ESPN ranked #7 overall, and the top TE prospect.

 

[GoldRusher]

Yes, especially for a team that has a solid QB.

 

[Fountain City Blues]

No. For a TE to be worth a top 10 pick they pretty much have to be a HOF’er day one with how TE wages are. Yeah, chasing the outliers is tempting with how meta having a HOF TE has been the last 30 years for SB success outside of having a HOF QB, but it’s not that easy.

A good TE is probably or 3rd or even the 4th best target on a good receiving unit.

 

[PDay8810]

just this week I've learned here you never pick a WR first overall, never draft an OT with the top three picks, and I assume now a TE.

THAT Jimmy Johnson guy was an idiot for selecting ( LOL) DT Russell Maryland first overall. What was he thinking? It was as if he was addressing his teams need. Thankfully for Jimmy, the internet wasn't what it is today. what an idiot.

 

[PDay8810]

No. For a TE to be worth a top 10 pick they pretty much have to be a HOF’er day one with how TE wages are. Yeah, chasing the outliers is tempting with how meta having a HOF TE has been the last 30 years for SB success outside of having a HOF QB, but it’s not that easy.

A good TE is probably or 3rd or even the 4th best target on a good receiving unit.

right on cue

 

[Clayton]

Similar to JSN last year imo. Top college player but how high do you take him.

Really going to depend on what his speed/weight combination. If he goes to the combine looking like Laporta I think he'll go top 10. If he puts on weight and slows down like so many TE prospects then I think he'll go around pick 20.

 

[redskinsfan1963]

whomever gets him is getting one hell of a te.

 

[WNY_FOOTBALL_DUDE]

Similar to JSN last year imo. Top college player but how high do you take him.

Really going to depend on what his speed/weight combination. If he goes to the combine looking like Laporta I think he'll go top 10. If he puts on weight and slows down like so many TE prospects then I think he'll go around pick 20.

Bowers feels like a WR in disguise. People are going to draft him for a two tight end set. I think he's probably going to get drafted outside the top ten. His blocking abilities will be the big thing they will look at.

 

[Beengay fudgepackers]

There’s so many heralded TEs in the draft that just don’t live up to their draft spot.

TEs not drafted in the first round: Kelce, Graham, Gronk, Antonio Gates, Aaron Hernandez, Sam La Porta.

I know I’m missing some first round pick TEs, but the relatively recent ones I remember are Pitts, OJ Howard, Greg Olsen, and Tony González. I know I’m missing some busts and maybe a good player or two from the modern era, but it looks like TE is hard to hit on in the first round. Then the position is probably the hardest to learn outside of QB and you realize that for half of that rookie contract he’s most likely going to be struggling while learning and a top ten pick just doesn’t make much sense on a TE.

 

[Clayton]

There’s so many heralded TEs in the draft that just don’t live up to their draft spot.

TEs not drafted in the first round: Kelce, Graham, Gronk, Antonio Gates, Aaron Hernandez, Sam La Porta.

I know I’m missing some first round pick TEs, but the relatively recent ones I remember are Pitts, OJ Howard, Greg Olsen, and Tony González. I know I’m missing some busts and maybe a good player or two from the modern era, but it looks like TE is hard to hit on in the first round. Then the position is probably the hardest to learn outside of QB and you realize that for half of that rookie contract he’s most likely going to be struggling while learning and a top ten pick just doesn’t make much sense on a TE.

I do think Gronk would've gotten drafted in rd1. IIRC he had back issues in college. Kelce had maturity issues. Aaron Hernandez had character issues to say the least. La Porta barely outside of rd1. I dont think its crazy to take a TE rd1. Just make sure all the elite outside WRs, OTs, Edge players, outside CBs and QBs are gone already. In the upcoming draft that might be like pick 8 or 9.

 

[Beengay fudgepackers]

I do think Gronk would've gotten drafted in rd1. IIRC he had back issues in college. Kelce had maturity issues. Aaron Hernandez had character issues to say the least. La Porta barely outside of rd1. I dont think its crazy to take a TE rd1. Just make sure all the elite outside WRs, OTs, Edge players, outside CBs and QBs are gone already. In the upcoming draft that might be like pick 8 or 9.

I was trying to answer the question of whether he’s a top 10 pick. My post didn’t make that clear. I think he’s a very risky top ten pick (Probably only second to QB) with much less payoff than if you would draft a good QB prospect. If I were a GM, I’d make sure all the other players on his level are gone before I think about taking Bowers. I might even take a second tier player that will be battling in the trenches (DLine, OLB, Oline, etc.) before a TE.

 

[Xeliou66]

I think so - a great TE can be a huge piece of a team, look at the Chiefs, Niners, Ravens etc. Bowers is one of the best TE’s I’ve ever seen in college, he’s just a beast, definitely worthy of a top 10 pick on a team that needs a TE/receiver.

 

[Lake Shore Drive]

No. For a TE to be worth a top 10 pick they pretty much have to be a HOF’er day one with how TE wages are. Yeah, chasing the outliers is tempting with how meta having a HOF TE has been the last 30 years for SB success outside of having a HOF QB, but it’s not that easy.

A good TE is probably or 3rd or even the 4th best target on a good receiving unit.

I kinda lost count in tracking this down, but there are at least 11 teams whose TEs are either 1st or 2nd on their respective clubs in receptions. There may even be more. So I don't think the importance of a quality TE should ever be underestimated. It's always been my half-joking take that a solid TE is a QB's BFF.

 

[Moab]

just this week I've learned here you never pick a WR first overall, never draft an OT with the top three picks, and I assume now a TE.

THAT Jimmy Johnson guy was an idiot for selecting ( LOL) DT Russell Maryland first overall. What was he thinking? It was as if he was addressing his teams need. Thankfully for Jimmy, the internet wasn't what it is today. what an idiot.

I doubt anybody called Jimmy Johnson an idiot, but a lot of those narratives are probably not real, just narratives. Media people love anal y tics and positional value, but seem to put aside team building by need. That's probably fine for them as they're not the guys getting fired for going for it on 4th down and not getting results as opposed to punting or attempting a FG. When was the last time you heard about a beat reporting being fired for writing a crappy article too many times in a season?

 

[Moab]

I kinda lost count in tracking this down, but there are at least 11 teams whose TEs are either 1st or 2nd on their respective clubs in receptions. There may even be more. So I don't think the importance of a quality TE should ever be underestimated. It's always been my half-joking take that a solid TE is a QB's BFF.

Are those teams good or bad? The reason I ask it this, in a very general sense most teams use WRs to stretch the field and attack the 2nd and 3rd levels of the defense. TEs are usually used to attack the middle of a D and the 1st and 2nd levels. So the question is are those TEs leading because the WRs are not good, are they an elite talent or is the QB a check down artist with nowhere else to go with the ball.

 

[PDay8810]

I doubt anybody called Jimmy Johnson an idiot, but a lot of those narratives are probably not real, just narratives. Media people love anal y tics and positional value, but seem to put aside team building by need. That's probably fine for them as they're not the guys getting fired for going for it on 4th down and not getting results as opposed to punting or attempting a FG. When was the last time you heard about a beat reporting being fired for writing a crappy article too many times in a season?

I've posted many times about media driven narritives. I understand cause they gain legs reading this board.

 

[Moab]

I've posted many times about media driven narritives. I understand cause they gain legs reading this board.

With a minimal amount of looking at the results that some of these media people put out shows who is worth reading or listening to and who just harp their narratives with no actual base in reality. Some of these people double down on stupid just to try to justify their points and look even dumber over time. IE Kiper...Bayless...and the list goes on and on....

 

[PDay8810]

i like to think professional NFL people use the draft thinking nothing other than making THEIR team better. I think zero bat one thousand.

My earlier post about Jimmy drafting Maryland went over many heads. Why? Their spinning media narratives. The media ripped Jimmy for not trading out and still selecting Maryland. Johnson had blinders about improving HIS team. Screw the media's bull shit rip jobs. Not many coaches today will risk the media driving the masses.

 

[PDay8810]

With a minimal amount of looking at the results that some of these media people put out shows who is worth reading or listening to and who just harp their narratives with no actual base in reality. Some of these people double down on stupid just to try to justify their points and look even dumber over time. IE Kiper...Bayless...and the list goes on and on....

But...guys like Stephen A prefer the odds towards the narritives. Look no further than his crusade towards Prescott and Dallas. Just a fan boy working OT shitting on a solid hard working leader type guy. Why? Well...he will say it's the cowboy fans. Not the players. He loves Parsons.

LOL
Badge of honor being a Cowboy fan who saw pretty much every game since 1965.

 

[Moab]

But...guys like Stephen A prefer the odds towards the narritives. Look no further than his crusade towards Prescott and Dallas. Just a fan boy working OT shitting on a solid hard working leader type guy. Why? Well...he will say it's the cowboy fans. Not the players. He loves Parsons.

LOL
Badge of honor being a Cowboy fan who saw pretty much every game since 1965.

I think his is an anti-Skip stance more than anything. At some point I'm guessing Bayless really pissed him off and he's been on the attack ever since.