Ryan McFadden·
The optimism in Bowers bouncing back stems from the newest playcaller in Las Vegas, Kubiak.
As the offensive coordinator for the Seattle Seahawks during their Super Bowl LX title run, Kubiak was effective at using different alignments and motions to feed the ball to wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who recorded 1,793 yards and 10 touchdowns. Smith-Njigba was placed in various spots on the field throughout last season. He lined up out wide on 74. 9% and in the slot on 21. 8% of his 482 routes. Bowers has shown he is more than capable of doing the same. In two seasons, Bowers has lined up for 19. 8% of his routes out wide, 47. 7% in the slot and 26. 1% in line. "I remember in Washington, [former tight end] Jordan Reed was arguably our best eligible there, and he became kind of the Joker that you were able to use in unique ways, and Brock [Bowers], in a lot of ways, is that," Cousins, who played with Reed in Washington from 2013 to 2017, said. Additionally, Kubiak was effective at using 12 personnel in Seattle, disguising the run and pass to keep defenses off guard. That was the reason Seahawks tight end AJ Barner's numbers spiked in Year 2. Barner totaled 52 catches for 519 yards and six touchdowns after recording 245 yards and four touchdowns under former Seattle offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb in 2024. Other tight ends have also had success in Kubiak's system. When Kubiak was the offensive coordinator for the Vikings in 2021, Tyler Conklin totaled 593 yards -- second most in a season of his career. Meanwhile, New Orleans Saints' Juwan Johnson recorded 50 catches for 548 yards when Kubiak was the playcaller in 2024.