For Aaron Glenn, a former player and scout for the New York Jets, Monday’s introductory press conference as the team’s new head coach was a full-circle moment — and one he’s fully embracing.
“This is where I started and you can’t write a better story than that,” the 52-year-old Glenn said. “This was my start for a number of situations. As a player, as a scout and now as a head coach. And you can’t write that story no better than that. Hopefully this will be my last stop. That’s the way I’m looking at it.”
Glenn, who was introduced alongside new Jets general manager Darren Mougey, also wasn’t deterred by taking over the reins of a team with the NFL’s longest playoff drought — 14 seasons.
“I want this job,” Glenn said of his first head coaching position. “I interviewed for a number of them, but I wanted this one.”
The Jets selected Glenn with the 12th overall pick of the 1994 NFL Draft out of Texas A&M. The three-time Pro Bowl defensive back played the first eight of his 15 NFL seasons with New York and later worked as a scout for the franchise from 2012-13.
Glenn didn’t mince words while addressing Jets players in the audience.
“Put your seatbelts on and get ready for the ride,” he said. “We’re the freaking New York Jets and we’re built for this (expletive).”
Regarding the future of quarterback Aaron Rogers, Glenn said each player will be evaluated the same way. Rogers is under contract for 2025 with a projected cap hit of $23.5 million.
“This thing is not about Aaron Rodgers,” Glenn said. “It’s about the roster.”
Glenn added that he won’t rush to a decision on the future Hall of Famer but will get “the right answer.”
Glenn had been the Detroit Lions’ defensive coordinator since 2021 following stints as a defensive backs coach with the New Orleans Saints (2016-20) and Cleveland Browns (2014-15).
Once the Lions lost to the Washington Commanders in the divisional round, Glenn said his focus switched to landing with the Jets.
“I didn’t want to leave the building without shaking (Jets owner Woody’s Johnson’s) hand and make sure we had a contract,” Glenn said. “Everything else was really out of it. It’s all about the Jets and it’s been that way from the beginning.”
