Is Aaron Glenn the right fit?

By: Jake Rajala

The New York Jets inked former Detroit Lions defensive coordinator to a five year deal. He chose to head to the big apple instead of coach the New Orleans Saints or other squads that desire a new head coach. With that said, a fascinating question clouds over Glenn: what does Glenn bring to the Jets?

Glenn played football for the Jets! Matter in fact, he played a whopping eight seasons for the Jets. He made two trips to the Pro Bowl in NY. He once had six ints in a single season for the Jets. Furthermore, he had two pick sixes in a single season for NY.

Glenn brought his talents to Cleveland in 2014 – as a assistant defensive backs coach. He left to New Orleans in 2016 as a defensive backs coach. He stayed in NO through the 2020.

Former NO tight ends coach Dan Campbell fled to DET in 2021. Glenn followed his friend to the Lions. He was hired as a DC for DET. Glenn’s defense bled in his first three seasons. Last season, the patience from Campbell with Glenn paid off.

Glenn’s defense ranked seventh in points allowed last season. His defense also ranked 11th in takeaways. The impressive aspect of DET having a top-shelf defense last season was that they were missing the likes of Aidan Hutchinson and Alex Anzalone, and Marcus Davenport for most of the season.

Glenn sputtered out in the playoffs. Nonetheless, it would be silly to judge him for one (or a few) bad moments.

Glenn will be able to work magic with the Jets defense, particularly with the secondary. Sauce Gardner, who was first team All-Pro in 2022 and 2023, should be ecstatic for a mind that specializes in helping the defensive backs.

The Jets ranked 20th in takeaways last season. They were still elite in other categories – as they were fifth in passing yards allowed and second in passing touchdowns allowed. The sky is the limit for the talent and new-found experience with the Jets defense moving forward.

Glenn should help his defense stop Josh Allen and the Bills. They lost 40-14 in their last contest.

I do believe that it’s slightly strange that the Jets moved on from an elite defensive mind in Robert Saleh and then bring in another defensive mind. Hence, I believe that Glenn needs to find a way to bring the elite defense into a Top-3 defense.

Hopefully, Glenn can retain the likes of Davante Adams to help his offense match his defense. It’s up in the air if Aaron Rodgers stays in the Big Apple. If he doesn’t, Glenn may want to bring Sam Darnold back to NY, or he may want to trade for the likes of Derek Carr or Kirk Cousins.