Aaron Glenn understands what is at stake for his New York Jets.
Over the last several years, it’s been easy to see the Jets as a laughingstock of an organization. Anonymous sources in the locker room, all-in seasons that blow up too early, and coaching replacements have made Gang Green one of the bottom-dwellers in the league.
That may be changing with Glenn at the helm, though. And former Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers provided the latest evidence.
Glenn gets off scot-free
Speaking on “The Pat McAfee Show” Thursday afternoon, Rodgers took the time to bash the Jets as much as he possibly could—and Glenn was a big part of that criticism.
New York’s head coach and Rodgers met before the Jets decided to publicly move on. Instead of keeping things private, Rodgers decided to scorched earth on his former team.
Rodgers said he and Glenn began speaking but promptly left to bring general manager Darren Mougey into the conversation.
“That was kind of strange,” Rodgers said. “I think we are going to have this long conversation. I’ve flown across the country, and 20 seconds in, he goes and he leans to the edge of, at and says, ‘So, you want t, play football?’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah, I’m interested.’ And he was like, ‘We’re going in a different direction at quarterback.’
Rodgers later complained that a phone call could have sufficed for Glenn and the Jets.
His intentions were clear. The four-time league MVP wanted to take lasting parting shots at the Jets’ new regime, believing that many things need to be fixed inside the organization moving forward.
That’s probably what Rodgers doesn’t get the most about Glenn.
Glenn’s strategy
The fact that New York’s head coach opted to meet with Rodgers personally is two-pronged:
- He wanted to gauge where Rodgers was in his mindset of playing for another year.
- The predetermined decision meant Glenn wanted to handle a difficult conversation face-to-face.
Comendable, honorable, and understandable.
It’s also clear that Glenn’s push for a culture change with the Jets is underway. Gone are the days of New York allowing veterans and young players to get by the coaching staff.
Under Glenn’s Jets, the team won’t be focused only on the quarterback position.
While Rodgers’ comments certainly will add fuel to the fire for the Jets, their head coach looked more honorable in those discussions than anything the quarterback has done over the last year.
