In 2023, the New York Giants had a season full of drama on and off the field. It wasn’t just injured bones and muscles but also injured pride and high tension among the front office staff.
The result was Wink Martindale’s departure and Shane Bowen’s entrance as defensive coordinator.
Bowen has been asked all kinds of questions about how he will handle the more colorful parts of Brian Daboll’s personality, and he’s been asked all the standard questions a new DC is asked.
One thing about Monday’s press conference that stood out was that Bowen expects the transition between regimes to be smooth.
“I don’t think they are really going to have to unlearn anything. I think it’s just going to be what we are emphasizing a little bit more, these guys understanding their piece in the defense, how it all works together, understanding concepts, being able to tie them in so we can do different things that are similar in a lot of ways, but there might be one or two variations here or there,” Bowen told reporters.
“But the focus right now is on style of play, on fundamentals and as we get to scheme and we get going in that direction, I think they will be able to pull a lot from what they have done in the past and then if there’s some new things here or there, we’ll teach them, right. We’ll teach them.
“But ultimately for me, I think it’s more of a general approach from my standpoint than anything.”
Bowen seems to have an understanding of what he’s walking into, what he has to work with, and how to make this a smooth transition.
The less the defense has to learn, the more they can focus on the new scheme and how to implement it. Mid-way through the season we’ll have an idea of how well Bowen did that job.
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