Giants Defensive Coordinator Shane Bowen on Why His Red Zone Defenses Have Worked

In defensive coordinator Shane Bowen, the New York Giants are getting a man who has run strong, if under-the-radar defenses in his time.

One area in particular where Bowen, the defensive coordinator for the Tennessee Titans from 2021 through 2023, saw his units excel was inside the red zone. For each of his three seasons in charge of the Titans defense, the unit ranked 15th or higher; in two of those seasons, they were a top 10 unit, and last year, the unit ranked first in the league, having allowed an astonishingly low 37.7 percent conversion rate. 

“I think, as it relates to red zone defense, it takes all 11 (players) down there,” Bowen said when asked about his past units' success rate. “The run game, you don't want to let teams run it in when you're that close, but the passing windows get tighter. We got to use that to our advantage and understand that. 

“I think the coordination, the understanding, being able to play off each other, the leverage that comes into play, and just how you're able to fill windows with some different pieces at times. Hopefully that continues.”

When describing his defenses, Bowen was asked if the term “bend but don’t break" was applicable. 

“I wouldn't necessarily say it's ‘Bend don't break,’ as much as it's, ‘Let's make sure if they do get down there, we don't really care how they do, but let's make sure when they do get down there that we're defending our house,’” he said. 

“That end zone is our house. We're going to do everything we can. We're going to empty the chamber. We're going to defend our house and find ways. That goes back to mental toughness. Being able to play the next play means not being focused on what happened but on what's coming. I think that's probably more the emphasis from my point of view than saying, ‘Bend don't break.’”

Bowen’s defensive philosophies are mostly the polar opposite of those previous defensive coordinator Wink Martindale held, especially regarding being aggressive.

That includes how they approach being “aggressive.” Whereas Martindale lived and died on the blitz, Bowen’s approach to being “aggressive” differs significantly. 

“I want these guys to attack. I want them to have an attacking mentality with everything they do, whether it's attacking the line of scrimmage up front, playing with our hands, leading with our hands, being violent with our hands,” he said. 

“Whether it's linebackers getting downhill violently, physical, DBs (defensive backs) getting out of breaks, showing up in the run game, staying on their feet, tackling, putting their chest on guys.   

“You play defensive football–I don't care if it's Pee Wee or if it's up to the NFL–when you play defensive football, there's an expectation of physicality, toughness, aggression and being aggressive throughout. Totally different than scheme and what that is and where that goes, but it's more about play style to me.”

It’s also about being smart so that aggressiveness doesn’t lead to stupid, back-breaking penalties, a balance that Bowen said could be tough at times. 

“Yeah, no doubt,” he said. “There's a fine line between being aggressive and hitting guys when it's legal and being stupid and hitting guys late, hitting the quarterback high or going low on the quarterback in the pocket. We have to play within the rules. We understand that. 

“Again, we want to toe the edge, we do. We want to get up to the edge of it, but at the same time, we can't do the dumb stuff that costs the team and is tough to come back. When you give these teams 15-yard penalties, (a) high-percentage (of the time) they're probably going to result in points.”

So, how do they approach that?

“Just doing a good job understanding the rules of the game and how far we can take it,” he said. 

“A lot of that even goes into some of the officiating crews sometimes, with what they're allowing. I think we got to get a feel for that early on in the game, how they're calling things and what we're able to potentially get away with or be able to push the limit on.”