But does anyone here actually believe this, and have a good reason of why it might go any better for Bowers? Because in scouting him, there are some eerie similarities that won't appease the "I want a traditional TE who blocks" crowd...
(Credit to Nate Tice for his excellent Bowers profile that you can read here. It's not behind a paywall.)Only 44.7% of Bowers’ snaps were from what PFF categorizes as a tight end alignment, which would rank 168th out of 191 qualifying college tight ends, and far lower than other prospects who were categorized as “receiving-first” when entering the NFL. Kyle Pitts aligned as a tight end on 62.9% of his snaps, Dalton Kincaid on 64.5% at Utah and Sam LaPorta on 67% at Iowa (which makes sense given the Hawkeyes' recent offensive philosophy of 1 yard and a cloud of dust).
This can seem like a negative stat, and it would be for some prospects, but when watching Bowers and his role in the Georgia offense, it's more indicative of Bowers’ versatility, athleticism, skill and ability as a pure football player and Georgia’s general reliance on his ability to win from anywhere. Bowers is listed as a tight end and can align there, but he also can line up outside, in the slot, as a wing or even as a rusher in jet motion (he rushed for 193 yards and five touchdowns in college).
I definitely agree with Nate that thinking of him as a Power Slot offensive weapon probably characterises him best. Perhaps we'll need his landing spot first before we get truly bullish on his early-career outlook... who here remains undeterred and thinks he's -that- much better than Kyle Pitts / Kincaid / LaPorta, and worthy of our SF 1.05-1.07?