Raiders-Dolphins winners and losers: Brock Bowers is indeed a unicorn

Rookie tight end a highlight in otherwise ugly Week 11 defeat

Perhaps the Las Vegas Raiders should’ve practiced during the bye week instead of resting up and trying to get healthy as possible for Week 11.

Because what the team displayed on Sunday against the Miami Dolphins sure looked like a group that took a week off before having a cram session for the trip to Florida. And the result was a 34-19 shellacking of a defeat.

While the offense showed incremental progress forward — namely the aerial attack — under interim offensive coordinator Scott Turner, senior advisor Norv Turner, and interim offensive line coach Joe Philbin, the defense under Patrick Graham was in neutral and even in reverse at times.

At 2-8 overall, Las Vegas has rolled snake eyes more than hitting the jackpot — yet there’s a windfall awaiting the Silver & Black. More details below.

WINNER: Brock Bowers

The Raiders rookie tight end is indeed a unicorn.

The 6-foot-4, 230-pound Georgia product garnered a game-high 16 targets and turned those into an NFL rookie tight end record 13 catches. Bowers’ career-best 126 yards gives him 706 on the year and that makes him the first tight end in league history to reach 700 yards in his first 10 career games.

Not only that, but the 13th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft has a total of 70 catches making him and wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. (71 receptions) to have 70 or more catches in their first 10 career contests.

The 21-year-old arrived on the NFL scene as a pro ready-prospect and he continues to prove it game in, and game out. At 70 receptions for 706 yards and three touchdowns, Bowers is projected by ESPN to finish his rookie season with 119 catches for 1,200 yards and five touchdowns.

LOSER: Patrick Graham

The loss against Miami represents the fifth time Las Vegas has allowed 30 or more points this season. Not only that, but Graham’s Raiders defense doesn’t even remotely look like the effective unit we saw in 2023.

Granted, injuries have showcased the lack of ideal depth Graham has at his disposal, but other NFL teams are dealing with decimated rosters, too.

The Dolphins converted 8 of 12 third downs, went 2-for-2 on fourth down, and visited the red zone four times getting touchdowns on three of those trips. There were no takeaways by Graham’s defense and Miami not having to punt a single time highlights just how a struggling Dolphins offense took advantage of a Raiders defense.

With how Las Vegas head coach Antonio Pierce waxed former offensive coordinator Luke Getsy after a string of ineffectiveness, will Graham be on the chopping block, too?

WINNER: Scott Turner

The younger Turner got the Raiders aerial attack on track against the Dolphins. Going with a quick style to get the ball out of quarterback Gardner Minshew’s hands faster and missing in play action, motion, and placing Bowers in a variety of spots, Las Vegas produced 282 yards.

Minshew finished 30 of 43 for said 282 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. Bowers led the group with running back Alexander Mattison hauling in three passes for 50 yards (a long of 31 yards).

Turner’s passing game would’ve had more completions and yardage if it weren’t for the scattershot nature of Minshew.

Photo by Rich Storry/Getty Images

LOSER: Raider Run Game

New play caller, same impotent ground game.

Las Vegas struggled mightily to produce on the ground as the stat line of 16 carries for 60 yards looks acceptable. But 20 of those yards came from wide receiver Jakobi Meyers.

Zamir White, who started the game, had five totes for nine miniscule yards while fellow running back Alexander Mattison churned out 19 yards on a similar five carries. The 3.8 yards per carry average was paltry — strangely enough, that topped Miami’s 3.2 yards per tote.

WINNER: Raiders Top 5 Draft Status

As the Ls keep stacking for the Silver & Black — Sunday’s loss marks the sixth-straight defeat — here’s the windfall mentioned above: The Raiders are current owners of the fourth overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.

With quarterback being the glaring need for Las Vegas, having a top 5 pick in the upcoming draft puts the team in position to not only look at top prospects at the position group, but also be in a spot where they can actually take one.

With how impotent the Raiders are on both offense and defense more defeats are likely on tap.

LOSER: Raiders Defensive Backs

Las Vegas cornerback room is looking more like a deep reserve/practice squad group due to injury and the Raiders were down to rookie Decamerion Richardson, Darnay Holmes, and Sam Webb as starters Jakorian Bennett and Jack Jones both got dinged up against Miami and starting nickel corner Nate Hobbs was inactive due to to an ankle injury.

This resulted in communication lapses that left receiving options — namely tight end Jonnu Smith — wide open for touchdowns on two separate occasions in Sunday’s game.

The first was the Dolphins’ initial touchdown where safety Isaiah Pola-Mao arrived very late as Smith went in motion to get open. The second was nary a Raiders defender near Smith on his 57-yard catch-and-run touchdown.