If anyone knows about turning around a struggling franchise, it is Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell. And he has high aspirations that his former defensive coordinator, Aaron Glenn, will do the same for the New York Jets, the same team that drafted him in the first round back in 1994.
Both the stakes and the expectations are high, especially after Campbell boldly stated, via Pro Football Talk, "If he can’t turn the Jets around, nobody can."
I am sure Glenn appreciates the bold statement coming from his former boss. After all, Campbell deserves credit for the Lions' rise from mediocrity to NFC North champions. But Glenn, who served as the Lions defensive coordinator under Campbell, played a pivotal role in transforming Detroit's defense into one of the league's most formidable units despite dealing with injuries. He had a big hand in the Motor City turnaround as well.
Dan Campbell put even more pressure on Aaron Glenn with the Jets, even if he didn't mean to
While Campbell was trying to hype up his former coach, the weight of Campbell's words adds an extra layer of pressure. Glenn is expected to be the savior of a Jets franchise desperate for Lions-like revival (or even something loosely related to it). They have had nine consecutive losing seasons and have not been to the playoffs since 2010.
Campbell knows the challenges Glenn will face are very similar to when he first took the Lions job back in 2021, and his endorsement is a vote of confidence that could be taken as a warning for the Jets' fans to exercise patience. As his defensive coordinator, Glenn was there to experience both the highs and lows with Campbell. Both franchises have similarly gone through multiple head coaches and general managers with no consistent success.
The culture inside the organization desperately needs to be changed. Glenn saw what that type of shift can do first-hand while in Detroit. Now, he needs to bring the same or something similar to New York.
The Jets are now turning to Glenn, and they hope he has the tools and the knowledge he learned from Campbell to turn around the Jets. More importantly, though, their owner, Woody Johnson, needs to come to reality about the current state of his team. He must be a much better owner to provide support, resources, and patience to Glenn.
When the Jets experience a Lions-like revival, only then can we prove that Campbell's faith was well-placed.