As we close in on the end of the season, it’s getting real for first-year defensive coordinator Shane Bowen. Setting aside the overall statistical struggles of the defense, the bigger problem is that Bowen’s defensive philosophy hasn’t meshed with the talent of the current New York Giants roster. The fact that he still needs to adjust or correct the glaring issues might determine whether he has a future or not here. The Giants have invested a lot into their defense, and the results have yet to be there. Including the free agent signing of former Carolina Panther Brian Burns, the extension of captain Dexter Lawrence, and the addition of draft picks Dru Phillips and Tyler Nubin.
It’s still being determined how much time Bowen will be given to turn things around or whether a coaching change is inevitable, but for now, the Giants’ defense is a mess. While Bowen can talk about fundamentals and technique all he wants, it’s becoming clear that he needs more than time to fix a unit that fails to execute week after week. With the season slipping away, Bowen’s defense has to find a way to tighten up soon, or this coaching staff will be in for a major overhaul this offseason… or sooner.
Giants Defense Struggling: Hot Seat Central
Defensive Scheme Disconnect From Wink vs. Bowen
The Giants’ defense has had a disconnect between the defensive scheme and personnel, which has been a hurdle for most of this season. Bowen was the former defensive coordinator for the Tennessee Titans, spending his first three seasons there as an outside linebacker coach. In 2022, Bowen and the Titans led the NFL in rushing defense for the first time since 2003, giving up a league-low average of 76.9 rushing yards per game (1,307 total) – the second-best finish in Titans’ franchise history. Bowen’s resume earned him the job in New York to fix the run defense and red-zone efficiency play.
The Titans and Bowen have coached some of the best defenses in the league at stopping the run and playing disciplined football. However, his system, which relies heavily on Cover 3 concepts, doesn’t match the Giants’ personnel assembled from former defensive coordinator Wink Martindale’s defense. Martindale’s defense was blitz-heavy and preferred man-to-man schemes to zone schemes. Therefore, in Bowen’s Cover 3 system, the defenders must read and react much more often than in press-man situations.
Bowen has made adjustments and utilizes Cover 1 on 29.3 percent of defensive snaps and Cover 3 on 38.4 percent; the success, though, remains hit-or-miss: In situations running Cover 3, the Giants are -0.071 EPA/Play, 28th in the league, whereas, playing man coverage or Cover 1, their EPA/play is 0.189.
Injuries and Underperformance With Pass Rushers
Before Dexter Lawrence was sidelined with a season-ending injury he was leading the league in sacks as the Giant’s pass rush was a bright spot early into the season. Still, with a solid group of edge rushers, including Kayvon Thibodeaux, Azeez Ojulari, and newly acquired Brian Burns, the expectation was that the Giants could create chaos in the backfield and disrupt quarterbacks. While the sack numbers were decent early on, the pressure rate has been alarmingly low since. At a 22.7% pressure rate, the Giants rank 17th in the NFL in that category, below where they should be with a talented defensive core.
Ojulari, Thibodeaux, and now Lawrence have struggled with injuries, and the rest of the defensive line has yet to show up consistently. And with that comes a lack of sustained pressure, allowing quarterbacks more time in the pocket, therefore showing the Giants coverage problems in their Cover 3 zone defense. This gives opposing quarterbacks time to find open receivers down the field. The Giants have allowed the highest completion percentage on deep passes at 77.3%, and it’s definitely out of proportion to how infrequently teams have attacked them downfield.
Ineffective Against the Ground Game
Despite having one of the best interior linemen in the league, Lawrence, the Giants have been unable to stop the run. This is another problem the Giants defense has faced. In Week 12, the Giants ranked 29th in the NFL at 5.27 yards per carry allowed.
The Giants have allowed an opponent’s running back to run for more than 100 yards in eight of their twelve games. Versus the Cowboys on Thanksgiving, Rico Dowdle ran for a career-high 112 yards, 106 of those after contact. His next best rushing game was two months ago, on October 6th, against the Steelers, when he had 22 carries for 87 yards.
Bowen addressed these “problems”: “There are three to four runs a game that we need to eliminate,” Bowen said. “We’ve got to make sure we’re tackling, fitting things appropriately, and playing with better fundamentals.” But that’s been easier said than done. When opposing backs break through the Giants’ front seven, tackling becomes sloppy, giving up chunk plays on the ground. Missed tackles have allowed 28 runs of 20 or more yards this season.
Inability to Create Takeaways
Although the Giants are ninth in the league in forced fumbles with 12, turnovers occur far too often. The Giants last had an interception in Week 1 versus Minnesota. Linebacker Darius Muasau has the lone pick for the Giants’ defense. That puts them last in the league with one interception through 13 weeks, with an -8 turnover ratio.
Wins are hard to come by in the NFL, but creating takeaways and winning the turnover margin increases your chances. For example, when the Giant’s defense cannot force turnovers with interceptions, they are putting themselves at a disadvantage. To put things into perspective, the average number of interceptions per team is currently eight this far into the season.
Main Photo: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
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