The New York Giants are poised to maximize their defensive potential by finding ways to deploy their three standout pass rushers: Brian Burns, Kayvon Thibodeaux, and Lorenzo Carter. With all three players showcasing exceptional talent, the coaching staff faces the challenge of effectively integrating them into the game plan. Defensive coordinator Shane Bowen is looking for innovative strategies to ensure that all three can contribute significantly on the field.
For Bowen, the challenge is finding ways to get all three of those players on the field together, especially on decisive passing downs. He noted, “You got three guys for two spots when you look at it from the outside in.” This recognition simply emphasizes the difficulty in keeping these world-class talent positioned defensively after such a large uptick in playing time.
Carter, primarily an outside linebacker, has experience playing inside linebacker from his collegedays at Penn State. This versatility provides Bowen a wide range of possibilities. At least to start, he may deploy Carter in certain packages — utilizing him as more of a classic, run-stuffing inside linebacker. This tweak would help the Giants not only to maximize their defensive personnel, but to keep all three of their dominant pass-rushers busy and productive.
Engaging with today’s changing world Burns has shown a great capacity for change in his long career. He’s even tallied half a sack from the defensive tackle spot which only adds to his credits on the skill set sheet. Only a standup outside linebacker Thibodeaux has only played off ball in the NFL. In that role, he has counted every one of his 21 career sacks. The Giants’ new coaching staff will need to find some inventive lineups that take advantage of this versatility.
Just as the Giants’ present-day circumstances parallel the most successful defensive lineups of the last few NFL seasons. The 2019 Jacksonville Jaguars featured the trio of Calais Campbell, Josh Hines-Allen, and Yannick Ngakoue. Together, they terrorized opposing quarterbacks, combining for a staggering 25 sacks between them. The 2022 Dallas Cowboys did well with a stacked roster—just as an example. Micah Parsons, DeMarcus Lawrence, Dante Fowler Jr., and Dorance Armstrong helped out by all four of them finishing the year with six or more sacks.
Carter had a phenomenal 2022 season playing outside linebacker. He tallied 12 sacks in his first season as a full-time defensive tackle. Both Burns and Thibodeaux have already achieved double-digit sack seasons in their NFL careers, further underscoring their potential impact on the field.
Bowen and head coach Brian Daboll are intent on forming the best outside linebacker rotation possible. They’re ring-leaders in creating the necessary strategy that allows their best three players to all play a bunch of minutes, yet maximizing overall effectiveness. All three pass rushers have indicated they’re open to moving around the field and doing whatever it takes to improve the play on this defense.
Burns commented on this flexibility, stating, “I mean, we’re all similar but different in a way, you know what I’m saying? So, we can interchange and we can really add a lot of versatility to any of our third-down packages or just the game in general. So yeah, it’s exciting.” That excitement is just a small glimpse into the optimistic mood surrounding the three that bodes well for what should be an aggressive, attacking Giants’ defensive scheme.
Bowen reiterated the competitive edge that comes from having play-makers all over the depth chart. He pointed to this diversity as an asset in assessing talent on the ground, including Aziz Abdul. This flexibility greatly increases the strength of the defense’s case. In addition, it puts a major strain on opposing offenses as they attempt to anticipate what the Giants will do.
As the season gets rolling, Bowen and Daboll need to make sure they’re taking full advantage of this unusual blend of talent. The capacity to rotate and rest without losing a step will be key in ensuring players are able to play at an electric pace from start to finish. The Giants’ coaching staff aims to create a dynamic defensive front that can confuse offenses and disrupt their game plans.
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