Shane Bowen- young up-and-comer or Vrabel favorite?

[MightyGiants]

With a quieter time, I have been digging into Shane Bowen.  I am trying to better understand what the Giants got when they drafted Bowen.  I haven't found enough to form a conclusion, so I will share my findings.

Prior Job Performance-  I say this is a mixed bag.  On the one hand, Shane moved up the ranks pretty quickly, which usually indicates that he has impressed people with his knowledge and ability.  In terms of how his unit has performed, it has been mixed.  Overall, it's been the middle of the pack (to the slightly low part of the middle of the pack).  His defenses did well against the run and in the red zone, but his pass defenses were not all that strong.

Education-  While I don't think education is that important to the job, degrees do speak a bit to a coach's general intelligence and work ethic.  On that front, Bowen was named to the Dean's List three times while at Georgia Tech (as a player and a student assistant), earned a Bachelor of Science degree in business management in 2009, and a master's degree in workforce development and education from Ohio State in 2014.

Coaching Mentors-   While Bowen has been heavily supported (and likely influenced by Vrabel, who brought him along with him), Bowen did learn from some solid defensive coaches Jim Schwartz and Dean Pees.  He even spent a little time with Urban Meyer.

Misc-  Bowen was a former LB and Safety and Georgia Tech who had his playing career cut short by a neck issue.


My biggest negative:  He wasn't the team's first choice.   Bowen interviewed for the job he had with the Titans under the new HC and with the Jaguars.  Both teams went in other directions.  He may not have even been the Giants' first choice as he was hired after a couple of the hot candidates the Giants interviewed were hired elsewhere, or the Giants were denied an opportunity to interview.  I will admit that sometimes a quality candidate doesn't interview well, but I think that is a somewhat rare situation.    Another negative, at least in my mind, is that I don't think the DC job was an attractive position.  Between Daboll potentially being on the hot seat, most of the coaching staff being in place, and the issues that caused the prior DC to leave, I can't imagine this was a DC's dream job.


Misc positive-  Shane will have the advantage of having two top-position coaches on his staff, with DB coach Jerome Henderson (who also has the title of passing game coordinator) and D-line coach Andre Patterson.    Having two top-position coaches should help Bowen achieve success. 

[MightyGiants]

Shane Bowen All-22 Titans Stream (Saints & Chargers Games)


Bobby Skinner uses All-22 Coaches Film to break down the Giants Defensive Coordinators Shane Bowen's defenses and tendencies.

[Painter]

I have reason to like the choice, which is all that I should, or would say for now.

Cheers!