NaVorro Bowman hasn't been a Raider long. The inside linebacker visited the team's training complex Monday morning, signed a one-year, $3 million contract that afternoon and was on the practice field a few hours later.
Bowman's in something of a rush. His new team plays the Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday night. Bowman plans to face them.
That'll take a crash course in Raiders defense. There's new terminology to learn and roles to master, even if he hones on a specific package.
It won't be easy. Even a perfect week might come up short with but one real practice in an incredibly quick turnaround.
It's rational to think he won't be ready, fair to give him two weeks practice before a Raiders debut.
That's not the tack he'll take.
"Hey," Bowman said, with a wry smile. "I'm going to show you something."
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He understands the situation. The Raiders are 2-4, in desperate need of an AFC West win. A loss might put the Raiders too far down to rebound. The four-time All-Pro knows he's needed, and believes he can help if he can get some scheme down.
"It'll take a lot of hours, a lot of studying, a lot of repeating the same words and things like that," Bowman said after Monday's walk-through. "It's part of being a good football player. You have to put the time in. It doesn't come easy.
"I'm the guy to do it. I won't let them down. I'll put the work in that's needed to be done."
Immersing in brand new be a cleansing process. Bowman left the only NFL team he's ever known Friday when the 49ers cut him loose. He wanted to spend his career with one team. After seven-plus seasons, a switch was required. He didn't like losing snaps. The 49ers wanted to go younger at the position. A trade was attempted. He didn't like the suitor, and the 49ers respectfully pulled back. An outright cut was the decisive action.
It gave Bowman an opportunity to choose his next step. He didn't go far. Bowman's new job sits 35 miles north in Alameda, which offered plenty of advantages for a family man.
"My twin girls are five and my son is eight and they're in school," Bowman said. "They're doing really well so you always want to keep that going as a parent. You don't want to keep switching them in and out. That played a big part in what I was going to do. For the Raiders to show as much enthusiasm in wanting me to come here made my decision a lot easier."
Enthusiasm was evident in two ways. The bottom line comes first. The Raiders offered $3 million to make this deal quick, adding a solid sum to the $6.75 million base salary guaranteed by the 49ers under his previous contract.
The second was clear in a Monday morning conversation with Jack Del Rio. The Raiders head coach spoke plainly, saying Bowman could make a major impact as a player and veteran leader of a shockingly young position group.
"It was really upfront, letting me know their position and how bad they want me," Bowman said. "He let me know exactly what he wanted to get out of me coming here and being a presence for this defense. Being more vocal, getting guys to understand the urgency to be really good at the NFL level."
His lessons start Tuesday morning. Starting weakside linebacker Cory James introduced himself in the locker room Monday and asked Bowman when he'll start watching film. The answer: bright and early.
Bowman has a game to play Thursday. That's possible because he didn't have to relocate. He can just hit the ground running. He's been constantly learning new systems during the 49ers coaching carousel, so he'd a quick learning. He also sees similar concepts between schemes.
"It's not too different," Bowman said. "The terminology is really the hard part. I'm a fast learner. I went out there today and I think I did pretty well. I'll get in here early tomorrow and learn from my mistakes and try to keep getting better."
That's Bowman's first goal. He also wants to show knee and Achilles' tendon injuries haven't sapped his effectiveness as many believe.
"I'm only 29 years old," Bowman said. "I still have a lot of juice left in me."
