To any Chiefs fans that were around between 2008-2012, Dwayne Bowe is a familiar name. But to newer fans and the public media, he’s more of a forgotten name.
After being drafted 23rd in the first round of the 2007 draft, Bowe had a lot of hype surrounding him. He finished just under 1,000 yards in his rookie season and five touchdown receptions.
The next year, he broke through 1,000 yards and improved with seven touchdowns that year. He was really starting to look like the next great Chiefs star and someone who would be a Pro-Bowl usual.
But then, Bowe was suspended for four games for violating the NFL’s PED policy. He finished with only around 600 yards and four touchdowns. He was going to need to step up in 2010 for his reputation as a player to remain great.
Luckily for him, 2010 ended up being the best year of his career. He accumulated 1,162 yards with 15 TDs, and was selected to his only career Pro Bowl. He was part of the reason the Chiefs won the AFC West that year and went to the playoffs.
Unfortunately, the Chiefs were a huge letdown in their Wild Card round game, losing 30-7 to the Baltimore Ravens. Matt Cassel threw three interceptions, and Bowe ended the game without a single reception. It would be a few more years before the Chiefs would finally win in the playoffs, doing so without Bowe on the team.
Bowe enjoyed one more successful year in 2011, where he had 1,159 yards, but only five touchdowns this time. He wasn’t selected to the Pro Bowl, and the Chiefs missed the playoffs with a record of 7-9.
The rest of his career was a pretty slow down-spiral into irrelevancy. He never broke 1,000 yards again, and only lasted on the team until 2014. He struggled with catching, and never seemed to be the same as in his first few seasons. For a while, many people thought he would become the caliber of player Tyreek Hill eventually became.
Though he never ended up working out for the team as a key difference-maker, he was still a huge part of the early 2010’s Chiefs teams and a certain memory for all who were fans at the time. And so when you watch Tyreek Hill speed down the field for a touchdown next year, remember the great wide-receivers before him (such as Bowe), and the great contributions they made to the storied Chiefs organization.
