Eleven months ago, Aaron Glenn had a decision to make - and it raised more than a few eyebrows in New Orleans.
Glenn, a former Saints assistant and player, was on the team’s radar for their head coaching vacancy. But instead of flying in for a face-to-face interview, he kept it virtual - and then took the head coaching job with the New York Jets, the franchise that drafted him back in 1994.
That move stung in the Crescent City. The Jets, after all, were mired in the longest active playoff drought across the four major pro sports - now sitting at 15 straight seasons without a postseason appearance.
Saints fans couldn’t help but ask: *He picked them over us? *
But at the time, it wasn’t exactly a dream job in New Orleans either. The Saints were staring down a salary cap mess - more than $50 million over - with an aging roster and no clear long-term answer at quarterback. Derek Carr was in place, but the future at the position was anything but certain.
Glenn, who had built a strong reputation over four seasons as the defensive coordinator in Detroit, was high on Saints GM Mickey Loomis’ list. But when Glenn passed, Loomis pivoted to Kellen Moore - the offensive mind who had spent the previous six seasons calling plays for the Cowboys, Chargers, and Eagles.
So now, with both coaches in their first seasons at the helm, the natural question is: who made the better hire?
That answer won’t come overnight. These are long-haul rebuilds - one in the Big Easy, one in the Big Apple - and it’ll take years before we can fairly judge the results. But through 14 games, both Moore and Glenn are facing steep uphill climbs.
The Saints, under Moore, are 4-10. But there’s a sense that things are beginning to take shape - slowly, yes, but in the right direction. Most notably, they’ve found something in rookie quarterback Tyler Shough, who’s shown enough to suggest he could be the guy going forward.
The Jets, meanwhile, are 3-11 and in disarray. They’ve fired their defensive coordinator and traded away two cornerstone defenders - All-Pro corner Sauce Gardner and star defensive tackle Quinnen Williamson - signaling a full-scale reset. They’ll start undrafted rookie Brady Cook this Sunday in New Orleans, a game that carries little weight beyond draft positioning.
The contrast is clear: one team has its quarterback of the future, the other is still searching. And that alone might suggest Loomis made the right call. It’s fair to wonder whether the Saints would be in the same spot had they gone with the defensive-minded Glenn - especially given how much of a difference a young quarterback can make in a rebuild.
This weekend’s matchup will be the first head-to-head meeting between Moore and Glenn as head coaches. But they’ve crossed paths before.
Two seasons ago, when Moore was calling plays for the Chargers and Glenn was coordinating Detroit’s defense, the Lions came out on top in a 41-38 shootout. Three years ago, Moore’s Cowboys beat Glenn’s Lions 24-6.
There’s mutual respect between them. Moore, speaking this week, praised Glenn’s defensive identity.
“I’ve always had a ton of respect for Aaron, especially from a defensive perspective,” Moore said. “Just the way they play.
Play style, the effort, the ball attacking. They’ve had such a history of that going back to Detroit.
When we’ve played him, it’s been a challenge. ... Obviously he’s building something there.
And he’s building it the right way and he’s going to build something really special.”
Saints defensive end Jonah Williams, who played under Glenn last season in Detroit, echoed that sentiment.
“The first thing that stood out was his energy,” Williams said. “He’s so intense in the meetings and he demanded a lot of his players. I knew he was capable (of being a head coach) the way he led the room.”
Moore, by contrast, brings a more laid-back approach. Defensive end Carl Granderson, who overlapped with Glenn during his time coaching the Saints’ secondary, has now experienced both styles.
“I think it’s a different type of energy between the two,” Granderson said. “Kellen’s energy is more like a happy energy.
AG’s energy is more intense. That’s the only difference.”
Different energies. Different philosophies. Two rookie head coaches trying to build something sustainable in two of the league’s more challenging environments.
Sunday’s game won’t decide who made the better hire - that story’s still being written. But it will offer a snapshot of where these two franchises stand in their respective rebuilds. And right now, at least in New Orleans, there’s a bit more clarity on where things might be headed.