Brock Bowers

Kelly, entering his first year as Vegas' OC, has moved Jakobi Meyers and rookie Jack Bech from the outside to the slot in early practices. This suggests both receivers -- along with Brock Bowers -- could see varied use in what is expected to be a run-first Kelly offense. Meyers in his two years with the Raiders has played from the slot at a 31 percent rate, way down from his days in New England, which saw Meyers operate from the slot on two-thirds of his routes. Bech during his breakout 2024 season at TCU ran 27 percent of his routes from the slot. In 2024, Meyers ranked 40th out of 66 qualifying receivers in yards per route run from the slot, a key measure of pass-catching efficiency. That's bound to rise with Geno Smith under center for Vegas in 2025.

That's a good sign for tight end Brock Bowers, who was selected first-team All-Pro as a rookie last season. In 2024, Bowers set an NFL rookie record for most receptions (112). He also established a new league benchmark for receiving yards by a rookie tight end (1,194), eclipsing the former record set by Hall of Famer Mike Ditka in 1961. Kelly also spoke about the possibility of playing both Bowers and fellow tight end Michael Mayer at the same time. The newest addition to the Raiders' offense is running back Ashton Jeanty, who was the sixth overall pick in last month's NFL Draft. "Ashton is talented a back ... as I've seen," said Kelly during Thursday's media session. "His ability to sustain runs after contact ... is a rare quality."

Scott Pianowski is investigating historical rookie trends at each key fantasy football position. First up, the tight ends.

The 49ers' George Kittle and the Raiders' Brock Bowers headline the top 32 tight ends ahead of the 2025 NFL season.