The New York Jets have found their man, and they’ve gone back to their roots in the process. No, not with Rex Ryan, who repeatedly advocated for a second chance as the club’s leader, but with Aaron Glenn, the team’s former Pro Bowl cornerback and, more recently, Detroit Lions defensive coordinator, who on Wednesday agreed to succeed Robert Saleh and interim Jeff Ulbrich as the Jets’ next head coach, per CBS Sports NFL insider Jonathan Jones.
Glenn, 52, notably began his NFL playing career with New York back in 1994, arriving as a first-round draft pick out of Texas A&M and spending eight years as a Jets defensive back. He totaled 36 pass breakups across 120 starts for Gang Green, and still ranks fourth in team history with 24 career interceptions.
He becomes the fifth NFL head coach to have a playing history with his current team, after Mike Vrabel (New England Patriots), Jim Harbaugh (Los Angeles Chargers), DeMeco Ryans (Houston Texans) and Dan Campbell, his most recent boss in Detroit.
After playing for the Jets from 1994-2001, then serving stints with the Texans, Jacksonville Jaguars, Dallas Cowboys and New Orleans Saints, Glenn returned to the Jets as a personnel scout to kick off his non-playing career in 2012. Honored as a member of the Jets’ All-Time Four Decade Team for his extended tenure in the organization, he grew traction as a head coaching candidate this offseason thanks to his player-friendly approach in Detroit, where he helped Campbell transform the Lions into one of the NFL’s most formidable contenders.
The Lions initially struggled under Glenn’s direction, ranking 29th and 32nd in total defense during his first two seasons as coordinator, respectively, but vaulted into the top 20 during the 2023 season, when Detroit advanced to the NFC championship. Glenn’s unit then finished in the top 10 in both scoring defense and takeaways in 2024, despite the team enduring injuries to several key defenders, including star pass rusher Aidan Hutchinson.
Glenn is the second Lions coordinator to depart Motor City for a head coaching job this offseason, after offensive play-caller Ben Johnson signed on to lead the rival Chicago Bears. He was originally also scheduled to conduct a second interview with the New Orleans Saints, another of his former NFL teams, but that in-person meeting was delayed due to a winter storm in that area.
The Lions, meanwhile, are the first team to lose both coordinators to head coaching jobs since the Philadelphia Eagles in 2023. Detroit will receive third-round compensatory draft picks in both 2025 and 2026 as a result of Glenn’s move, thanks to NFL rules designed to reward the hiring of minority candidates.
