NaVorro Bowman knows what a championship-caliber team looks like. He may not have hoisted a Lombardi trophy during his illustrious career, but he was part of a San Francisco 49ers Super Bowl run in 2012 which ended just short of a championship. He was also part of two more winning seasons with the team.
Bowman's retirement from the NFL became official on Tuesday. He visited with the 49ers in June and watched the team, which includes some former teammates, practice during organized team activities. What does the former NFL linebacker think of the 49ers' current squad?
Bowman joined 95.7 The Game on Wednesday and discussed the benefit of having a strong defensive front — one of the 49ers' potential strengths heading into the 2019 season.
"The defensive line controls the game just as well as the offensive line," Bowman said on the "Joe, Lo and Dibs" show. "If you have a defensive line that loves to play behind the line of scrimmage, that just makes the guys behind them's jobs easier. I think it starts up front. You start from the front, and you move to the back."
Bowman went on to discuss the job San Francisco has done building what could be a dominant defensive front that could cause havoc on opposing offenses for years to come.
"They've shown that's what they're going towards, having [DeForest Buckner] and those guys up front, bringing in some veterans, just to keep those guys on edge," Bowman continued. "There's a direction. I was there, and we weren't playing well. It took some time. It's a process, but The Faithful always stuck in there, and I'm sure we'll get everything back on track and be right where we need to be."
You can listen to the entire conversation with Bowman below.