The Detroit Lions’ week retains getting worse. On Saturday, Dec. 18, the Lions, who have been favored to win the NFC and advance to the Tremendous Bowl, misplaced within the divisional spherical to rookie Jayden Daniels and the Washington Commanders in what can be simply the most important upset of the NFL playoffs. Then yesterday their offensive coordinator, Ben Johnson, introduced he can be leaving the Lions and taking the Chicago Bears head teaching job. Now in the present day their defensive coordinator introduced he may even be leaving for a training job. Aaron Glenn is formally the top coach of the New York Jets.
Glenn has been the Lions defensive coordinator for the final 4 seasons, or for the whole thing of Dan Campbell’s teaching period. After a drastic personnel and schematic shift from the Matt Patricia period, Glenn’s aggressive, man-heavy defensive scheme struggled for the primary two seasons of his tenure earlier than they introduced in the fitting gamers. In 2024, he put collectively a protection that completed seventh in scoring and twentieth in yardage regardless of shedding 15 gamers to damage, together with top-tier starters Aidan Hutchinson, Alim McNeill, Carlton Davis and Alex Anzalone. The Jets are bringing in a defensive ace and in addition a well-known face.
Glenn really began his enjoying profession with New York in 1994 and rejoined the Jets as a personnel scout to start his non-playing profession in 2012. He was acknowledged as a member of the Jets’ All-Time 4 Decade Workforce for his lengthy tenure with the crew, and his player-friendly fashion in Detroit helped Campbell flip the Lions into one of many NFL’s most formidable groups.
Attempting to show across the Jets received’t be a simple process. This would be the third 12 months of the Aaron Rodgers period, and it will likely be a make or break one for the legend. All people believed the return of Rodgers from damage would save the franchise, however it solely made them worse. Rodgers is coming off his worst season as a professional; he put up his worst statistical season since he was a rookie, his crew solely received 5 whole video games, and plenty of of his teammates have said that they don’t seem to be keen on him and are not looking for him again subsequent 12 months. That selection will finally relaxation with Glenn. How he handles Rodgers subsequent season may even converse volumes to the remainder of the crew.
The Lions, however, should determine what they’ll do with each coordinators gone. Glenn fully revolutionized the Lions’ protection into one of many league’s greatest. With him gone and plenty of gamers recovering from damage, there isn’t a telling how the Lions protection will look. They might want to determine it out shortly. Shedding a coordinator can destroy a crew, so shedding each can fully derail them. The Lions are already spiraling after the loss to the Commanders; they can’t afford to let this darkish cloud carry into subsequent season. The Lions have been one of many brightest spots within the NFL over the previous three seasons, however everyone remembers simply how dangerous it was in Detroit for a decade earlier than Campbell was introduced in. Campbell can not afford to permit them to fall again to the cellar, or he would be the subsequent coach out of Detroit, and it received’t be for a hiring both.