Aaron Glenn isn’t pretending his first year with the Jets went the way he wanted.
The second-year coach said he owns the mistake of standing too firm on his original plan, especially after a offseason that brought major turnover on his staff. According to The Athletic’s Jonathan Jones, the “tide turned” over the summer, and offensive coordinator Tanner Engstrand and defensive coordinator Steve Wilks were among the departures. Jones also said team owner Woody Johnson may have “motivated many of the firings.”
Glenn said the call was his.
“I kick myself in the a** for that. When you have a vision for something, and as you execute it- sometimes you got to pivot.
I think the toughest people, just in general, are the ones who are not afraid to pivot and not afraid of what anybody else will say on the outside. Because if you don’t pivot, you crash and burn,” said the 54-year-old coach.
That willingness to adjust goes beyond the coaching staff. Glenn also acknowledged that his handling of the media last season was a “mistake,” a sharp shift from a first year in which he came off more combative than collaborative. One anonymous former Jets coach didn’t hide how that landed.
“Everything with the media, I used to cringe. First year, we’re not (Bill) Belichick here. I just felt like he (Glenn) was arrogant-and I don’t want to say that word-but he knew ball more than everybody else,” said the unnamed source.
Glenn’s first season ended at 3-14, and his second run in New York already carries the feel of a defining one. He says the version people will see now is the “real version” of him.
Whether that version is enough to move the Jets forward is the question hanging over everything.
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