Heading into Week 1, the New York Jets’ top perceived strength was expected to be their secondary. With an All-Pro cornerback in Sauce Gardner and a collection of quality starters, Gang Green was hoping the group would remain among the elite in the game.

That certainly didn’t happen on Sunday afternoon at MetLife Stadium.

New York gave up four touchdown passes and blew two leads of multiple scores in a 34-32 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers and former quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

Gardner looked elite in coverage throughout the game. The former Defensive Rookie of the Year and two-time All-Pro looked the part of a top corner.

Every other player around Gardner faltered. And it has left Glenn reflective following his debut loss.

In particular, there is one type of coverage where Glenn wants to see improvement.

Jets speak out on secondary

Rodgers went an impressive 22-of-30 for 244 yards and four touchdowns en route to a revenge performance of sorts against his former team. Despite the gaudy numbers, the Jets believe there were some things in the secondary to build off of.

At least, that was the argument made by Glenn the day after the loss.

“I think for the most part when we were in man coverage, I thought our guys were very sticky,” Glenn said. “Obviously, you saw Sauce make some plays on the ball when it came to him and D-calf in their one-on-one matchup.

“I think some of the zone coverage we have to get better at as far as understanding exactly where guys are and matching these guys for the most part.”

Aaron Glenn flashes Campbell-esque game management traits

The Jets lost the pre-snap mind games with Rodgers. Whenever New York was in zone, Pittsburgh’s starting quarterback audibled to an ideal play to beat the Jets’ coverage.

When the Jets went in man coverage, Rodgers would hammer the secondary with crossing routes. While Gardner shined in those situations, the rest of the secondary wasn’t so lucky.

Free agent signing Brandon Stephens, a major concern from the fanbase even before suiting up for the team in camp, struggled in his debut with the Jets. He gave up five receptions on seven targets for 60 yards and two touchdowns, the most yards and touchdowns of any player in New York’s secondary on Sunday. Stephens also missed a tackle, committed a pass interference penalty, and dropped a potential interception.

Despite the struggles, Glenn continues to be confident in the veteran corner.

“Brandon has been doing a really good job in coverage all through training camp,” Glenn said. “The thing that we have to continue to work on with him is being able to locate and finish on the ball.

“Listen, I am encouraged and I do think as the season progresses, he will be able to make those plays because he’s a really good cover guy and that showed yesterday on tape.”

New York won’t be making any major changes after one week of regular season play. It would be highly irregular for any team to make significant changes after a single week, even if a player struggles.

While Jets fans may be hoping for alterations after a rough first week, those changes aren’t coming yet.

Glenn believes the team has a strong secondary. The group will have to prove him right in Week 2 against a Buffalo Bills team coming off a 41-point opener.