Meet Todd Bowles

[Tai Chi≈Surfing]

The Jets hired Arizona defensive coordinator Todd Bowles as their new head coach. Besides the fact that he used to run the Cardinals' defense, here are eight things to know about Bowles:

1. He's a local guy. Like Mike Maccagnan, the Jets' new general manager, Bowles is from New Jersey. Bowles, 51, is from Elizabeth. He played at Temple and went undrafted in 1986.

2. He had a productive NFL career. Despite going undrafted, Bowles played safety in the NFL from 1986-93. He played his first five years, and last two, with Washington. He spent one season with San Francisco. He played in 117 regular season games, started 82, and had 15 interceptions, plus seven fumble recoveries.

3. He has ties to Jets' search consultants. Bowles' first job in the NFL was in the Packers' player personnel department, from 1995-96. He was hired by GM Ron Wolf, who, along with Charley Casserly, consulted Jets owner Woody Johnson on his coach and GM searches. Casserly took over as Washington's GM in 1989, so Bowles also played for Casserly.

4. His first NFL coaching job was with the Jets. Bowles joined the Jets as a defensive backs coach in 2000, after spending 1997-99 as defensive coordinator at Morehouse College and Grambling State. The 2000 season was the first that Johnson owned the Jets. Bowles was one-and-done with the Jets because head coach Al Groh lasted only that one season. Bowles then went to the Browns for four years.

5. Bowles worked under Bill Parcells. The legendary former Jets and Giants coach was the Jets' GM in 2000, so he gave Bowles his first NFL coaching gig. Parcells later served as the Cowboys' head coach, from 2003-06. Bowles was their secondary coach from 2005-07. When Parcells was Miami's executive vice president of football operations from 2008-10, Bowles was the assistant head coach and secondary coach during that entire time, plus 2011.

6. He actually has head coaching experience. Well, not really, but technically. In 2011, he served three games as Miami's interim head coach, going 2-1, after the Dolphins fired Tony Sparano. Bowles moved on to become the Eagles' defensive backs coach in 2012.

7. He hasn't been an NFL coordinator all that long. In October of 2012, Bowles took over as the Eagles' defensive coordinator after Juan Castillo was fired midseason. That was Bowles' first experience as an NFL coordinator. Bowles went to Arizona for the 2013 season.

8. He proved himself with the Cardinals. The 2013 season was Bowles' first full season as a coordinator. In 2013, the Cardinals ranked sixth in the NFL in yards allowed, first in rushing yards allowed, 14th in passing yards allowed and seventh in points allowed. In 2014, the Cardinals dealt with a rash of injuries, but still made the playoffs, on the strength of Bowles' defense, which ranked fifth in the league in points allowed. The Cardinals' defense was 24th in yards, 13th in rushing and 29th in passing, but Arizona was stingy in the red zone -- third-best in the NFL.