History Made in Las Vegas: Brock Bowers Shatters Puka Nacua’s Rookie Reception Record
Las Vegas Raiders (2-13) tight end Brock Bowers stands alone as the NFL‘s all-time record holder for receptions in a rookie season.
Bowers caught his 106th pass of the season in Sunday’s Week 17 road game against the New Orleans Saints (5-10), breaking the record previously held by Los Angeles Rams wideout Puka Nacua (10-6). Nacua recorded 105 receptions as a rookie in 2023.
Bowers previously set the all-time record for most receptions in a single season by a rookie tight end, passing the Detroit Lions’ (13-2) Sam LaPorta. Like Nacua, LaPorta set the record last season with 86 receptions.
Brock Bowers continues historic rookie season
Bowers has been as advertised since entering the league and has continued to produce at a high clip despite the Raiders’ struggles on offense this season. Now, we’ll see how long his rookie receptions record holds up. Fellow rookie Malik Nabers of the New York Giants (2-13) came into Sunday with 97 catches this season. Nabers is obviously talented, so Bowers will likely need to perform well in Week 18 to ensure his record lasts longer than a week.
The former Georgia standout further etched his name into the history books Sunday by breaking a record which stood for 63 years. In 1961, Mike Ditka tallied 1,076 receiving yards in his first season in the NFL. It didn’t take long for Bowers, who entered Sunday’s game with 1,067 yards, to pass Ditka against New Orleans. Ditka finished his career with a Gold Jacket and while Bowers has a long way to go to get to that status, he looks to be on that path.
“Just the success I’ve had has surprised me, I don’t know,” Bowers told ESPN earlier this month. “You don’t know how you’re going to do in the next level and you kind of question things. But it’s worked out so far.”
