2025 NFL Draft prospect profile – Billy Bowman, DB, Oklahoma

Can Bowman be a versatile piece for the Giants’ defense?

The New York Giants have a young and talented secondary, at least on paper. They’ve added quite a bit through free agency and the draft, but are they done building the back end of their defense?

Oklahoma defensive back Billy Bowman Jr. is listed as a safety, however he’s a very versatile player with great movement skills. He can play a variety of positions and alignments in most modern defenses, which could make him a great value if he slips on draft day.

Could that value appeal to the Giants?

Prospect: Billy Bowman Jr. (2)
Games Watched: vs. Iowa State (2023), vs. Texas (2023), vs. Tennessee (2024), vs. Texas (2024)
Red Flags: Hamstring (2021), Knee (2022)

Measurables

Kent Lee Platte | RAS.football

Strengths

Best traits

• Athleticism
• Ball skills
• Versatility
• Competitive toughness

Billy Bowman Jr. is a compact, athletic, aggressive, and versatile defensive back.

Bowman primarily played safety for the Sooners, splitting time between strong and free safety depending on the situation. He has a dense build at 5-foot 9 ⅞ inches, 192 pounds, and combines that with excellent speed (4.42-second 40-yard dash). Bowman also has exceptionally quick feet and his hips are very fluid for a safety, which allows him to execute (off) man coverage assignments well.

His athleticism allows him to quickly get good depth in his zone drops as well as quickly fire downhill from depth. Bowman is quick enough that he doesn’t need to settle before changing directions and has a high play speed.

He flashes impressive instincts and has very good ball skills – he had 6 interceptions, three of which he returned for touchdowns, in 2023 before teams began avoiding him in 2024. Bowman has great range in coverage and is able to close receiving windows from a surprising distance away. Likewise, he’s very physical at the catch point and can jar the ball loose even if the catch is initially made.

Bowman is a very tough player and seems to relish the physical side of the game. He reportedly begged coaches to let him play on special teams despite injuring his knee on a kick return in 2022. He’s also a very willing run defender and a big hitter when he arrives at the point of attack.

Weaknesses

Worst traits

• Over-aggression
• Size

There are two main weaknesses in Bowman’s game, one that could be coachable and one that isn’t.

Starting with the one he can’t do anything about, Bowman is short and has short arms. He isn’t “undersized” at 192 pounds – that’s pretty densely built for a guy measuring 5-foot-10. However, being 5-foot-10 with 29 ½ inch arms will likely lead to size concerns in draft rooms. Bowman could find it difficult to take on blocks at the NFL level, as well as deal with bigger wide receivers in coverage. He doesn’t have a big “catch denial” radius and won’t be able to high-point the ball against longer NFL receivers. His physicality, athleticism, and ball skills will help, but he won’t be out-rebounding 6-foot-3 receivers.

His limited tackle radius also magnifies his other issue: Over-aggression.

Bowman has a consistent issue with biting on misdirection or taking overly-aggressive angles to the ball. Combined with his speed, he’ll often over-run plays and take himself out of position. That can lead to poor or outright missed tackles, and some ugly plays.

Game Tape

(Bowman is the Oklahoma safety wearing number 2 with white sleeves)

Projection

Billy Bowman Jr. projects as a high-volume nickel defender at the NFL level.

Whether or not he is named a starter will likely depend on the situation into which he’s drafted.

Bowman could be a starting safety in the NFL, though he might need a year of development before a team is comfortable with him being an every-down player. His over-aggression can lead to big plays, which is a concern. That said, his ability to play a variety of positions could make him valuable as a movable piece.

Regardless of whether he takes the first snap, he should see a high volume of plays per game and he has the potential to be an impact player on any down or distance.

Does he fit the Giants?
Yes

Final Word: A Day 2 value