Lynn Bowden signs first NFL contract with Raiders

The Las Vegas Raiders have signed third-round draft pick and former Kentucky Wildcats star Lynn Bowden Jr., the team announced Saturday. It’s a four-year deal that expires in the 2024 offseason.

Bowden, who was selected 80th overall in the 2020 NFL Draft as a running back, appeared in 39 games with 25 starts over his career with the Wildcats. He recorded 206 carries for 1,530 yards and 13 touchdowns to go with 114 grabs for 1,303 yards and six more scores. The high school quarterback also completed 38/79 pass attempts for 495 yards, three touchdowns and five interceptions.

As a junior in 2019, Bowden won the Paul Hornung Award as the nation’s most versatile player. After playing wide receiver in the first five games, Bowden moved to quarterback and led Kentucky to a 6-2 finish, including a win over Virginia Tech in the Belk Bowl.

Primarily a runner, Bowden carried the ball 185 times for 1,468 yards and 13 scores. He also caught 30 passes for 348 yards and one scores. He set program records for most rushing yards (1,369) as a quarterback, most 100-yard rushing games by a quarterback (seven), and set the NCAA bowl game quarterback-record for rushing yards (233) in the Belk Bowl.

Bowden was also the only player in the FBS to lead his team in both rushing yards and receiving yards, while finishing fifth in the nation with an average of 160.7 all-purpose yards per game.

Good luck to Bowden as he now embarks on his NFL journey.