Ex-Jets QB uninspired with Aaron Glenn hiring - "We're going down the same road once again"
Former NFL MVP quarterback Boomer Esiason had a downbeat reaction to the Jets hiring Aaron Glenn as their new head coach. Glenn was the defensive coordinator for the Lions this season. Detroit finished as the top seed in the NFC before losing in the Divisional Round to the Commanders.
Boomer Esiason was born in New York and, though he is best remembered as the quarterback of the Cincinnati Bengals, also played for the Jets. Aaron Glenn, similarly, played for the franchise after being drafted in the first round and began his post-playing NFL career with them.
The former quarterback, though, is not enthralled with the homecoming because he is another defensive coordinator following Robert Saleh and interim hire Jeff Ulbrich as the Jets' head coach. Esiason said,
"Even though he's a very popular defensive coordinator, a very popular personality within the Jets community, we're going down the same road once again. They've continued to go down and they have not had an ounce of success at all."
"They've thrown money at every aspect of the team that they possibly can, including quarterback, General Manager, head coach. They've spent so much money on so many players over the last 12 years, and they still can't get it right."
New Jets HC Aaron Glenn has addressed concerns similar to Boomer Esiason's
The new Jets head coach knows that people will be concerned about his experience on the defensive side of the ball, both as a player and a coordinator. However, he has addressed this issue before in Detroit saying that he understands offense and he will speak about plays on both sides of the ball.
"Here’s the one thing that I would say about myself, I’m a coach. I just happen to be on defense. I understand the offense just as well as a number of people. So if you wanna hire me, you’re going to hire a coach, you aren’t going to hire a defensive coach. I’m going to talk to the offense just as much as I’m going to talk to the defense."
Aaron Glenn is certainly confident in his abilities and will need to show his offensive capabilities as he takes over the job in New York. For the past many seasons, it has been the part that has let their team down. From first-round picks like Sam Darnold and Zach Wilson to future Hall-of-Fame quarterback like Aaron Rodgers, nothing has worked. He will need to figure it out quickly for Boomer Esiason's comments not to become prophetic.