Raiders rookie tight end Brock Bowers has missed multiple weeks of work with a foot injury, so his status for the opening weekend of the regular season was a topic of conversation at head coach Antonio Pierce’s press conference on Thursday.
The answer about Bowers’s availability will bring some pleasure to Raiders fans. Pierce said he feels “really good” about Bowers being available against the Chargers in Week One and suggested that his inactivity has been related to making sure that a young player doesn’t try to do too much too soon.
“You gotta be smart. Sometimes you gotta protect them from themselves, so that’s all it is,” Pierce said.
The Raiders would be looking to get off to a fast start under any circumstances, but opening with a divisional game on the road makes it all the more important. Having all hands on deck will help that effort, so the Bowers news is good for an offense that needed all the help it could find last season.
