Zackary Bowman (born November 18, 1984) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...

. He was selected by the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They are one of two remaining ...

in the fifth round of the

2008 NFL draft The 2008 NFL draft was the 73rd NFL draft, annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. The draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York (state), New York ...

. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

Nebraska Nebraska ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Ka ...

and New Mexico Military Institute. He also played for the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...

and

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team ...

Early life

Bowman attended Batesburg-Leesville High in

Batesburg, South Carolina Batesburg-Leesville is a town located in Lexington and Saluda counties, South Carolina, United States. The town's population was 5,362 as of the 2010 census and an estimated 5,415 in 2019. History The town of Batesburg-Leesville was formed in ...

, and later attended Bartlett High School in

Anchorage, Alaska Anchorage, officially the Municipality of Anchorage, is the List of cities in Alaska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Alaska. With a population of 291,247 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it contains nearly 40 percent of ...

, and graduated in 2003.

College career

After Bowman attended

New Mexico Military Institute New Mexico Military Institute (NMMI) is a public military junior college and high school in Roswell, New Mexico. Founded in 1891, NMMI operates under the auspices of the State of New Mexico, under a dedicated Board of Regents that reports t ...

, he attended

University of Nebraska–Lincoln The University of Nebraska–Lincoln (Nebraska, NU, or UNL) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Lincoln, Nebraska, United States. Chartered in 1869 by the Nebraska Legislature as part of the M ...

. In his two seasons at Nebraska Bowman had a total of 56 tackles, 20 pass break ups, 3 interceptions, and he played in 22 games, 9 of which he started. Bowman had to

redshirt Redshirt, Red Shirt, or Redshirts may refer to: Sports * Redshirt (college sports) Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically ...

the 2006 season due to torn

anterior cruciate ligament The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of a pair of cruciate ligaments (the other being the posterior cruciate ligament) in the human knee. The two ligaments are called "cruciform" ligaments, as they are arranged in a crossed formation. In ...

in his left knee on the third day of fall practice and missed the season.

Professional career

Chicago Bears (first stint)

The

selected in the fifth round of the

. He made the team's opening day roster but was relegated to the practice squad to make room for guard Dan Buenning, who was acquired in a trade. The Bears signed Bowman off the practice squad in week seven, after their top three cornerbacks were ruled out of a game against the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. The Vikings compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. Founded in 1960 as ...

due to injuries. Bowman played a crucial role in the Bears victory over the Vikings by recovering a fumbled punt in the endzone for a touchdown. Bowman sustained an injury in the fourth quarter, which should have left him sidelined for the remainder of the game, but he insisted on returning due to the Bears shallow depth at the cornerback position. He recorded his first career interception upon returning, which also prevented the Vikings from engineering a last second touchdown drive. Bowman required surgery to repair the injury he sustained during the game, and was placed on the team's injury reserve for the remainder of the season. His efforts during the week merited him the "NFC Special Teams Player of the Week" Award. In training camp 2009, coaches were very impressed with Bowman's abilities and play on the practice field. Despite missing most of the preseason with a hamstring injury, Bowman was expected to be a key part of the Bears secondary in 2009 with teammates

Nathan Vasher Nathaniel DeWayne Vasher (born November 17, 1981) is an American former professional American football, football player who was a cornerback for seven seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He was an All-American for the Texas Longhorns ...

and Charles Tillman. In Week 2 of the regular season, Bowman took over Vasher's starting spot at cornerback. He recorded 66 tackles, six interceptions, and one forced fumble over the course of the season. During the Bears 2010 mini camp, head coach

Lovie Smith Lovie Lee Smith (born May 8, 1958) is an American football coach. He has served as the head coach of the Chicago Bears, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Houston Texans of the National Football League (NFL) and the Illinois Fighting Illini. Smith has be ...

announced that Bowman would replace Charles Tillman as the team's left side cornerback. In a typical

Cover 2 Zone coverage (also referred to as a zone defense) is a defensive scheme in gridiron football used to protect against the pass. Zone coverage schemes require the linebackers and defensive backs to work together to cover certain areas of the fi ...

defense, team's will usually place their best cornerback on the left side of their defensive formations.

Minnesota Vikings

Bowman signed a one-year deal with the

on March 26, 2012. On September 2, 2012, he was waived to make room for

A. J. Jefferson Anthony Orange, previously named A. J. Jefferson (born April 4, 1988), is a former Canadian football cornerback. He played college football at Fresno State. He was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Arizona Cardinals in 2010. Early life an ...

Chicago Bears (second stint)

Bowman was later re-signed by the Bears. In Week 16 against the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The ...

, Bowman recovered

Beanie Wells Christopher Michael Wells (born August 7, 1988), known as Chris Wells or Beanie Wells, is an American former professional football player who was a running back for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college ...

' fumble in the endzone for a Bears touchdown, as the Bears won 28–13. In 2013, Bowman was an unrestricted free agent, but signed a one-year deal with the Bears. During the season, Bowman played in all 16 games while starting in seven, and recorded 49 tackles along with three interceptions.

New York Giants

On March 31, 2014, Bowman signed a one-year deal with the

Miami Dolphins

On April 13, 2015, Bowman signed a deal with the

. He was released on September 6, however, re-signed later that day. He was waived on November 24.

NFL career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

Personal life

Bowman was a sociology major and earned his degree in December 2007. He is married and has three sons.

References

External links

New York Giants bio

Minnesota Vikings bio

Chicago Bears bio

Nebraska Cornhuskers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bowman, Zackary 1984 births Living people Players of American football from Anchorage, Alaska Players of American football from Columbia, South Carolina American football cornerbacks American football safeties Nebraska Cornhuskers football players Chicago Bears players Minnesota Vikings players New York Giants players Miami Dolphins players