Always enjoy talking football with the ex-Redskins safety (and current columnist for the National Football Post).He touched on a few subjects this time: No. 1 receivers; Chris Cooley and, of course, safety and how it’s changed in recent years.By the way, Bowen’s recent series of blog posts on the Xs and Os of the game — particularly on various routes and coverage schemes — have been fantastic.
For the email report, I talked with Bowen on whether or not a team needs to have a No. 1 receiver. There’s a concern that Pierre Garcon is not a true No. 1. My contention: It’s not a big deal. Not as long as you have other quality pass-catchers. The scheme gets players open. Yes, it’s good to have players who can catch a pass vs. anyone and against any sort of coverage. But not having an Andre Johnson doesn’t mean an offense is doomed.
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“Guys like Pierre Garcon, does he have to be a No.1? If you want to call him that, fine. It doesn’t matter. All that matters is how he’s used to create matchups,” Bowen said. “Use him in the slot or the X or the Z. That’s what I’d do. Move guys all around. Same with Fred Davis or Chris Cooley. You move those guys around too.”
Bowen also said the misdirection emphasized by Mike Shanahan leads to headaches for defenders. He recalled facing Denver in a preseason game and colliding with linebacker Kevin Mitchell on a swap boot play (the fullback releases to the flat).
“The boot was so good and we sold on the run and they’d sneak that football back across the formation and be wide open every play. That stuff is tough,” Bowen said. “It’s easy to say read your keys, but NFL players will stick their eyes in the backfield a lot. You do that and you’re toast and if it’s a misdirection team.”
Like many others, Bowen said Cooley can still help — with a caveat.
“If he’s healthy, Chris is crafty enough,” said Bowen, a former teammate of Cooley’s. “He doesn’t have the athletic ability of a Jermichael Finley or Kellen Winslow, but he’s a good route runner and he catches the ball with his hands. He’s very underrated in the open field.”
And Bowen discussed his old position and how it’s evolved.
“You can’t be a guy with limited cover skills that can cover in the box,” he said. “You have to have corner skills to play safety in today’s NFL. And to cover the No. 3 receiver and the tight end, you have to cover or you can’t play.”
To read the rest of the interview with Bowen, subscribe to my free weekly email report.
