Cousins Offers Unique Comparison In Throwing To Star Tight End

Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Kirk Cousins has thrown to all kinds of receivers, but like most quarterbacks, his preference is to throw to the open receiver. 

But there are exceptions, and his new favorite target, tight end Brock Bowers, is one of them. Cousins has been finding Bowers early and often, and in clutch situations with plays where he absolutely has to have a catch, and he’s had to learn to target his tight end even when he’s not open, according to a report from Myles Simmons of Pro Football Talk. 

It’s a unique situation, and Cousins compared it to his time with the Minnesota Vikings, when he had to learn to do the same thing with receiver Justin Jefferson. Jefferson would often be double-teamed, and initially Cousins would read off Jefferson and continue through his progressions to see who was open.

That lasted until coach Kevin O’Connell gave him a different set of instructions for Minnesota's star receiver

“‘Still throw it to Justin when he’s covered,’” Cousins said to explain  the mandate. 

He didn’t like doing this initially, but Jefferson is a game-changer in that regard. His ability to use positioning and acrobatics to haul in throws while covered is unique, and Bowers is one of the few players who comes with his own special version of this. 

The best example of this happened in the first quarter of the Raiders’ 38-33 win over the New York Jets, when Bowers was covered in the end zone. The tight wasn’t just covered; he was interfered with, but he still beat his man and overcame the penalty to make the catch. 

Bowers also creates a special problem of his own. He’s so dominant that he’s made it tough for other receivers to get involved, especially since they need to actually be open to make the catch. 

The most recent example of this was receiver Jalen Nailor, who finally got involved in the offense. Nailor finished with four catches for 38 yards and a touchdown, but Cousins had to go back through tape to see that Nailor was getting open but not getting the ball. 

The week before that it was receiver Tre Tucker, who had a 100-yard receiving day against the Los Angeles Rams. He’s been an important deep threat, but occasionally Tucker vanishes. 

Not Cousins. He just keeps rolling along, open or not, and he currently has 41 receptions for 547 yards and five touchdowns as the Raiders primary weapon.