So I'm trying to find out more about Shane Bowen. It's tough because he's connected at the hip with Mike Vrabel, who was very hands on at Tennessee. Jim Schwartz also had some influence there when he was a defensive consultant (so you saw a wide-9 influence from him).
Three things that keep coming up:
(1) He usually doesn't like to rush more than four.
(2) They stunt and twist a lot up front.
(3) They heavily use simulated or creeper blitzes.
What is #3? Back in the day, we on BBI would usually refer to these concepts at fire zone blitzes. Think of it as dropping one of your pass rushers into coverage while rushing someone else the pass protection scheme was not anticipated rushing. So the defense still rushes only four, but it's not the four guys you think they will be.
Technically, creepers don't show pre-snap pressure, but simulated blitzes will show the pre-snap pressure.
So if Bowen does what Vrabel/Bowen did in Tennessee, we should anticipate seeing Kayvon Thibodeaux and Brian Burns in coverage more often than fans like.
I bring this up because it used to drive BBI'ers crazy when Spagnuolo (and other DCs) did this.
Personally I'm most excited about how Tennessee stopped the run well, and hope to see a much improved run D in 2024. I can live with the occasional deep pass, it happens, WRs make plays. What I hate watching is those long, sustained drives where the D is getting gashed on the ground, the clock is being eaten away, the TEs are running wide open, and you can almost see the fight going out of the D when they cannot get a stop on third down. And that to me was the Giants' D last year. Especially against Dallas.
Too much of anything is bad, I would think the successful DCs are the ones who figure out the best way to A) utilize their players to their strengths and B) vary and disguise their pass rush concepts from season to season and of course somewhat game to game.
Fans hate it, but the entire league uses it to varying degrees.
As I said, there was a time when Giants fans were done with Spags because of his use of fire zone blitzes.
Fans hate it, but the entire league uses it to varying degrees.
As I said, there was a time when Giants fans were done with Spags because of his use of fire zone blitzes.
Spags could be going to the hall of fame.
The moral is Giants fans not liking something might actually mean you're doing a great job.