last week\u2019s 33-32 loss<\/a>.<\/p>\nBut head coach Brian Daboll could\u2019ve dictated to Bowen to be more aggressive, the position coaches could\u2019ve spoken up during the chaos to get the best players on the field, or any of the defensive players could\u2019ve made a big play.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is just an extremely tough, disappointing way to lose, especially how well we played early in that game,\u201d Bowen said Thursday, four days after his defense went from pitching a 45-minute shutout to allowing 33 fourth-quarter points.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have to do a better job getting these guys in positions to make plays in the fourth quarter. And I also have to make sure our best guys are on the field in those critical times.\u201d<\/p>\n
Giants Shane Bowen Defensive Coordinator when the New York Giants practiced Thursday, October 23, 2025. Robert Sabo for NY Post<\/p>\n
The Giants didn\u2019t have Dexter Lawrence or Abdul Carter on the field \u2014 using Roy Robertson-Harris in Lawrence\u2019s place \u2014 when the Broncos completed a 29-yard pass against seven defensive backs. Lawrence was on the field for the ensuing 22-yard completion to set up the field goal.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith Dex,\u201d Bowen said, \u201cI have to make sure he\u2019s out there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lawrence, who still is searching for his first sack this season, as well as edge rushers Carter, Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux, all played between 52-57 of 81 defensive snaps. Whose call is personnel in that defining spot?<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s me,\u201d Bowen said. \u201cIt\u2019s all me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) runs for a touchdown as guard Quinn Meinerz (77) defends against New York Giants defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence II (97) in the fourth quarter. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n
The Giants\u2019 defensive captains tried to shoulder the blame after the perception of fraying in the locker room emerged.<\/p>\n
Burns, who was emotionally shouting \u201cdrop eight\u201d in the tunnel after the game ended, explained Wednesday that was the \u201cperfect call\u201d in that scenario and gave a vote of confidence to Bowen.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
One day later, it was Bowen\u2019s turn to face the music.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s how Shane is,\u201d safety Tyler Nubin told The Post. \u201cHe\u2019s calling the plays, so he ultimately feels like he has responsibility over all that, but it\u2019s a team effort. It\u2019s never one person. We have a lot of people that really care, take their job seriously and are not afraid to take responsibility when there is a finger to blame.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Protecting a two-point lead, Bowen recognized that the Broncos were timeout-less and in a seven-man protection.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a cat-and-mouse game, understanding how they\u2019re going to attack you,\u201d Bowen said. \u201cI had an idea of what was coming. It felt like we were in a good call. Obviously, it didn\u2019t work out, and it wasn\u2019t what we wanted it to be.\u201d<\/p>\n
It was just one week earlier that Daboll boasted about telling Bowen to be more aggressive in a key spot that led to an interception against the Eagles.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI think me and Dabes are always in constant communication on game day,\u201d Bowen said. \u201cHe knows what\u2019s going on. It\u2019s always back and forth.\u201d<\/p>\n
Giants linebacker Abdul Carter (51) and New York Giants Defensive Coordinator Shane Bowen when the New York Giants practiced Thursday, September 4, 2025. Robert Sabo for NY Post<\/p>\n
Seldom-used Beau Brade and Nic Jones were on the field because of injuries to Jevon Holland and Paulson Adebo. But it was Dru Phillips who allowed the first completion and Deonte Banks who allowed the second.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have to do a better job making sure these guys understand the situation, what it is, understand the call, and how we\u2019re going to execute it,\u201d Bowen said.<\/p>\n
Daboll screamed in the direction of Bowen as the clock wound down then spiked his hat and headset after the kick sailed through the uprights. Considering Daboll\u2019s history of tense relationships with fired coordinators Wink Martindale and Thomas McGaughey, did the reaction anger Bowen?<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing of note with me,\u201d Bowen said.<\/p>\n
Giants head coach Brian Daboll in the third quarter against the Denver Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGo behind the scenes with Big Blue\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSign up for Inside the Giants by Paul Schwartz, a weekly Sports+ exclusive.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\tThank you\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
Many outspoken Giants fans have turned Bowen into the culprit for a 2-5 record. The long-dormant offense looks like it has broken through with rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart, and the Giants have lost two games (one to the Cowboys) that they led in the final 33 seconds.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s the NFL. You have to perform each week,\u201d Bowen said. \u201cGet back out there, get this taste out of our mouth, lean on the guys, lean on the coaches. One way or another, we\u2019re in this thing together.\u201d<\/p>\n
Two weeks ago, Bowen was a star in the win against the Eagles. Now his ability to feed quick adjustments to the players will be tested with the rematch on tap Sunday.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have a good relationship with all these guys,\u201d Bowen said, \u201cwhere I hope they\u2019re able to voice their opinions to me \u2014 good, bad, indifferent \u2014 as it goes.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Shane Bowen patted his hand against his chest to show where blame falls for the Giants\u2019 historic collapse.\u00a0…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":470568,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2067],"tags":[200,258,1489,7,519,1917,56,2321,2469,6,23741,9],"class_list":{"0":"post-470567","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york-giants","8":"tag-brian-daboll","9":"tag-denver-broncos","10":"tag-dexter-lawrence","11":"tag-football","12":"tag-giants","13":"tag-new-york","14":"tag-new-york-giants","15":"tag-newyork","16":"tag-newyorkgiants","17":"tag-nfl","18":"tag-shane-bowen","19":"tag-sports"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/115426288463618988","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/470567","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=470567"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/470567\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/470568"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=470567"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=470567"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=470567"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}