When Todd Bowles was the Jets head coach, he wanted to hire Aaron Glenn as the DB coach, but Glenn opted to stay in Cleveland. Now, 10 years later, they’ll share the practice field when Bowles’ Buccaneers meet Glenn’s Jets for two joint practices at the Atlantic Health Jets Training Center this week before Friday’s preseason matchup between the two clubs at MetLife Stadium.
“X’s and O’s wise, he’s outstanding,” Glenn said of Bowles. Their relationship started when Glenn was still a player; Bowles coached him for a season with the Jets in 2000 and then for his final season in Dallas.
“He’s demanding in his own way. He has this quiet persona about himself, but you know exactly where he stands,” Glenn said. “He doesn’t BS players either, and that’s what I like and I’ve learned a lot from him.”
The Jets and Buccaneers will get different looks and a lot of valuable reps and Glenn and Bowles are on the same page with how they want practice to go.
“This is a team that’s been to the playoffs for a number of years, so I’m looking forward to seeing our guys go up against this team,” Glenn said of Tampa.
Overall, he wants to see two days of improvement and discipline from his Jets.
“We have two different schemes that we’re coming in with and now once you bring in another element from another team, cover structures, run plays, pass concepts, man it really tests your discipline on how you’re doing things because at some point, you get used to your offense,” Glenn said. “But when you have another team come in, and that’s the good thing about joint practices, is you get to test what you do against another team.”