Yes. “To cow” means to put another person in a state of fear. That is the verb needed in the headline. Pork (subject) cows (verb) contenders (direct object) would be the accurate, if rather dopey, base sentence.
“To cower” means to expresses fear; this would be the correct verb if the subject were “contenders.”
I’m aware of what the words mean, which is basically the same thing. Either could be used correctly in the headline.