A.J. Brown vs Brock Bowers

“There’s no doubting Brown’s talent; however, I do wonder if the way to replace a slot receiver (Diggs) that was the key piece of your offense is to add a physical outside receiver like Brown. There are also my concerns about his knee in the long term.”

“At 28, Brown is a big upgrade for a Patriots passing game that ranked fifth in the league, a huge improvement from the Eagles’ 27th-ranked unit.”

“A.J. Brown was the round two pick, built on a significant situational upgrade. His new offense ranked ninth in neutral passing rate last year, compared to his old offense’s 15th-ranked mark, and that gap could widen further with continued quarterback development, a new star receiver alongside him, and a tougher schedule that should force more passing.”

“Even in a “down” season, Brown topped 1,000 yards receiving on a run-first offense and scored seven touchdowns. In ESPN’s open score and PFF’s receiving grade — both metrics that seek to evaluate a wide receiver’s performance even if he’s not targeted on a passing play — Brown ranked No. 9 and No. 13 out of over a hundred wideouts.”

“Getting AJ Brown, who was the WR5 over the final seven games of 2025, cannot hurt Maye. All three Ballers think he is a receiver who could truly finish as the WR1 overall.”

“Brown gives Drake Maye the true alpha this offense needed. Now he climbed into Maye's draft pocket, and while he can still pay off pick 16, the price feels closer to stacking tax than pure value.”

“Andrew Erickson isn't worried about A.J. Brown's "down" season. He believes it created a buying opportunity. Despite modest touchdown totals last year, Brown still produced at a high level while commanding an elite target share. Erickson expects Josh McDaniels to feature Brown as the unquestioned focal point of New England's passing attack. If that happens, Brown could easily return to top-three fantasy wide receiver production.”

“A.J. Brown and Dallas Goedert each missed just one game due to injury. Brown has since been traded.”

“Repeating a first-place ranking in both categories is unlikely, and it will be even more challenging if the offensive line can't take a step forward in protecting Maye, even with A.J. Brown added to the receiver room.”

“Since entering the league in 2019, Brown has consistently demonstrated an ability to rack up massive yards after the catch (YAC) numbers, but has never been a true volume-based receiver. If one were to remove his totals for the 2023 season (which was an outlier), Brown averaged fewer than 70 receptions per season.”

“The analysts believe fantasy managers may be underestimating just how much upside exists in A.J. Brown's new situation. Derek Brown pointed to improvements in offensive philosophy and red-zone passing opportunities as reasons for optimism, and there was confidence that Brown remains one of the league's premier target earners.”

“In a putrid Eagles' passing attack last season, Brown was ninth in target share, 13th in air yards and eighth in red-zone target share. Now he moves to a team with an ascending passing quarterback and an offense that targets its receivers downfield.”

“Round 4: Brock Bowers (TE – LV) Brock Bowers dealt with injuries last season, but assuming he stays healthy this season, he should be in for a TE1-caliber season.”

“I’m certainly willing to spend early-round draft capital on Brock Bowers , who’s capable of putting up the sort of numbers the elite wide receivers produce, or Colston Loveland , who turned into a monster late in his rookie season.”

“Loveland is the consensus TE3 for 2026 fantasy drafts behind only Brock Bowers and Trey McBride .”

“Neither should be drafted this high. Last season, McBride averaged 18.6 PPR points per game, and Bowers averaged 15.5 in 2024, the better season of his two years in the NFL.”

“Everyone loves receiving a well-considered offer; nobody likes being offered a mediocre tight end when they already have Brock Bowers.”

“Sleeper lists Trey McBride at $34, Brock Bowers for $27, and Colston Loveland at a shamefully low $18.”

“I had the pleasure of facing Brock Bowers in Week 9 of the 2025 season when he put up 127 yards, three TDs, and 43.3 fantasy points. Truthfully, Zach Ertz was never going to give me that kind of week at this point in his career, and that’s exactly my point. At TE, you are drafting for positional advantage just as much as raw production.”

“Brock Bowers finished the season as the TE8 in PPR leagues, and while that’s fantastic for most, he was the TE1 as a rookie, so this was a noticeable step back. Bowers played in just 12 games last season, which included Weeks 1-4 and Weeks 9-16. For fantasy football, he missed Weeks 5-8 and Week 17.”

“There are great expectations for Brock Bowers in his third NFL season following an injury-plagued Year 2.”

“Brock Bowers is essentially the “skeleton key” in drafts this year. I’m prioritizing him in every single one of my leagues. Bowers goes towards the end of the second round, but I’m willing to take him as high as 13 overall.”

“Raiders HC Klint Kubiak said that TE Brock Bowers will continue to be a center point of the offense. “ We’ve got to get the most out of Brock, ” Kubiak said, via ESPN . “ He’s been successful in college and high school with whoever’s coached him. Can’t say enough great things about him. Love his work ethic. He is a standard-bearer. ””

“One analyst’s tight end approach this year is intentionally narrow: get Brock Bowers , Colston Loveland , or Tyler Warren if the value is there, or punt the position entirely to the late rounds.”