One of the biggest storylines in the early part of the New York Giants offseason was the confusing and ugly departure of defensive coordinator Wink Martindale.
The Giants would eventually replace him with Shane Bowen, who worked as the Tennessee Titans defensive coordinator the previous three seasons.
Linebacker Bobby Okereke, who had arguably his best season in his first season in a Giants’ uniform under Martindale, seems to be excited about the defense under Shane Bowen.
Okereke previously spoke highly of his expectations about the Giants’ defense heading into 2024. Now he’s at it again, praising Bowen during an appearance on Up & Adams with Kay Adams.
“It’s almost about as 180 of a flip as it can be,” Okereke said. “Going from Wink — I loved that system, attacking, blitzing all the time — to Shane, very methodical, probably one of the most cerebral defensive coordinators I’ve ever been around. Just the way he sees the game, the way he’s gonna call it, the way he coaches it, the attention to detail. Yeah, I think we’re gonna dominate this year, and it’s gonna be led by him.”
Martindale brought out the best in a few players like Okereke, Kayvon Thibodeaux, and Dexter Lawrence. It will be interesting to see how the strengths of the Giants’ defense shift to Bowen’s system.
Of course, the addition of elite pass rusher Brian Burns is only going to help the Giants’ strong front seven.
Okereke played every defensive snap for the Giants last season and arguably should have been a Pro Bowler. With the change to Bowen, the Giants’ defensive approach is going to look a lot different in 2024.
However, clearly Okereke has confident in what his new defensive coordinator brings to the table.
