It was his calling card.
Aaron Glenn, a well-respected figure across NFL circles, was believed to have a deep pool of people he could rely on to fill out a strong staff as head coach of the New York Jets. It was something the team sorely needed after over a decade of coaching futility.
Top minds on either side of the ball were expected to be brought in, especially through Glenn’s relationships from successful tenures in Detroit and New Orleans.
After a year, though, not only has Glenn failed to build an impressive staff, but he has undergone a full-on coaching rebuild in just one season. It could not be further from what Jets fans were hoping for.
The more changes that are made, the worse Glenn’s perception as a head coach will get.
Jets’ coaching staff overhaul
No Jets fan is happy about the team’s 3-14 season in 2025. Coaching played a big role in those struggles from a pure schematic standpoint. Glenn’s actions show he believes that the coaches who failed to turn the team around needed to be held accountable.
New people will be brought in to try and fix the organization’s struggles. But the buck stops with the head coach. It was Glenn who chose to make coaching changes deep into January, costing the Jets valuable assistants on the open market. It was also Glenn who struggled just as much in his first year on the job as any of the coaches underneath him.
As assistant coaches are poached across the league, Glenn needs to understand that this overhaul isn’t just about finding the right guys for each role. It’s about trying to rebuild some stability in an organization known for the opposite. It’s also about rebuilding his reputation as a coach following a disastrous debut, where brash soundbites were followed by poor performances.
Perhaps Glenn doesn’t care how he’s perceived by fans or people around the league. As a former player who displayed the utmost confidence at the cornerback position, that is certainly possible.
But the Jets are a mess. They were a mess when Glenn came in, yes, but he’s only made things messier.
With the recent exit of tight ends coach Jeff Blasko, the Jets are up to 10 coaches from Glenn’s initial staff who will not return in 2026. With every coach Glenn has to replace, things will only get worse for him moving forward.
A popular question has emerged among Jets fans: “What does Aaron Glenn do well as head coach?”
When it first sprang up, it seemed unfair for a first-year head coach who did not have the most talented roster.
Now, though, as a coach who has not only been unable to win games but has also dumped nearly his entire staff after just a single season, that question becomes more difficult to answer by the day.