Raiders TE Brock Bowers tops Malik Nabers to retake NFL rookie reception record

Brock Bowers reclaimed his own record on Sunday afternoon to wrap up his first season in the league.

The Las Vegas Raiders tight end officially broke the NFL’s rookie receptions record on Sunday in their matchup with the Los Angeles Chargers. That broke a tie with New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers and gave Bowers the record back after he set it just last week.

The former Georgia standout hauled in his 110th catch of the season in the third quarter of the contest at Allegiant Stadium when quarterback Aidan O’Connel found him wide open in the middle of the field for a 21-yard gain.

That catch officially gave Bowers the rookie reception record and broke a tie with New York Nabers, who had 109 receptions this season. Nabers had five catches in the Giants’ season-ending loss in the early wave of games on Sunday, which moved him past Bowers briefly on the list.

Bowers, however, needed just two catches to hit the mark and take sole possession of the record back. He actually broke Puka Nacua’s mark of 105 receptions last week, though he has been in lockstep with Nabers for weeks. Before Bowers and Nabers, only three other players in league history had made more than 100 catches during their rookie campaigns.

Though he will take home the rookie record, Bowers will likely finish just shy of the league’s single-season receptions record for a tight end. Former Philadelphia Eagles star Zach Ertz set the mark with 116 catches in 2018. Bowers did move into second on that list with his catch in the third quarter, however. Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce had a career-high 110 catches during the 2022 campaign.

Though it was a rough season all-around in Las Vegas, Bowers was one of the lone consistent bright spots for the organization.

This post will be updated with more information shortly.