Jets coach Aaron Glenn feels team is on verge of 'breakthrough' despite being 0-4
Jets head coach Aaron Glenn instructs staff as he watches play against the Miami Dolphins in the first half of an NFL game Monday in Miami Gardens, Fla. Credit: AP/Marta Lavandier
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. – Aaron Glenn is no stranger to rough starts and remains confident that things will click for the winless Jets.
“I believe in everything that we're doing, and I know there’s going to be a breakthrough,” Glenn said Wednesday. “When it breaks through, this thing's going to pop exactly like we all want it to.”
The Jets are 0-4, and for good reason. They’ve been sloppy with the football and played undisciplined. The Jets lead the NFL with six fumbles lost. In Monday’s loss in Miami, the Jets had 13 penalties and three fumbles.
Glenn, a first-time head coach, knew it wouldn’t be smooth right out of the gate. Past experiences have taught Glenn to stick to your principles and things will turn.
He was a first-year Lions’ defensive coordinator in 2021 when they lost their first eight games and were 0-10-1 when they finally got a victory. He said people wanted head coach Dan Campbell and Glenn fired.
“You get ridiculed and you get talked about,” Glenn said. “People are after you in the worst way.”
Campbell didn’t blink. He and his coaching staff continued to work and push the things that they felt were important. The Lions have been Super Bowl contenders the past two seasons.
Glenn is trying to follow Campbell’s lead.
“As a coach, you just have to believe and understand how you want to build and the foundation that you're trying to set that you cannot waver from those things, even when the outside noise is really on you,” Glenn said. “And (Campbell) did an outstanding job of that, the same with the whole staff, because we all felt it.”
Glenn said you have to “lean on” the positives and keep trying to create “a play style” that will lead to wins. He believes it will happen with the Jets under his watch.
“We just knew at some point it was going to break through,” Glenn said. “Once it broke through, man, we just rolled. I feel the same way about here. And I understand how the fans feel. I do. I'm hurting just like they are.”
The players are too. The frustration level in the locker room was high after Monday’s game from players who have been with the Jets for multiple years and are putting in the work but getting the same results.
Glenn said addressing why they’re going through this is a big part of correcting this, but they spend more time on how to fix things, so it doesn’t keep happening.
“We talked about that today. We’ve talked about that on a number of occasions,” Glenn said. “Our players believe in that. To me I think that the frustration will be there, but the confidence and the belief is going to be there because now we have answers and solutions to how we're going to get better.
“Does that mean we're going to get better right now? No, but you see it. You see small glimpses of it, and that gives players a belief.”
Quarterback Justin Fields is staying positive and pointed out that the Jets have lost three games by one score. He said if they “clean up” the turnovers and penalties, they’ll be in a “better position to secure those wins.”
Fields said the players and coaches have the “same mindset” of focusing on themselves and fixing what needs to be fixed.
“To get to that point to where we are securing those dubs everybody has to be on the same page,” Fields said. “That's not only in this locker room, but that's the coaches as well, and everybody else around the building.”
Injury news
Running back Braelon Allen is seeking a second opinion on his injured knee. Glenn called it “pretty serious.” The Jets still are determining whether to place Allen on injured reserve, which would sideline him a minimum of four games.
Newly acquired cornerback Jarvis Brownlee, who has been dealing with an ankle injury, will practice this week. Glenn said Brownlee is competing to play outside corner and nickelback. Brownlee could slide in for nickel corner Michael Carter II, who is expected to miss Sunday’s game against Dallas due to a concussion.
Edge rusher Jermaine Johnson (ankle) and kick returner Kene Nwangwu (hamstring) could return against the Cowboys. Johnson missed the last two games and Nwangwu the last three.
Al Iannazzone covers the Jets for Newsday after spending nearly two decades on the NBA beat with Knicks and Nets.
