Great mentorship can lead to lasting success.
Speaking to reporters at New York Jets training camp, head coach Aaron Glenn revealed that the greatest coach of his NFL playing career, Jets legend Bill Parcells, continues to mentor him to this day.
“I’ve always been glad he’s been in my corner,” said Glenn. “He’ll always be in my corner. He still coaches me to this day, but I appreciate that.”
Glenn, who played eight seasons in the Big Apple, spent three years with Parcells as his head coach (1997-99), which included a run to the AFC championship game in 1998. Years later, Parcells encouraged him to become a scout with the Jets, which launched his NFL coaching career.
Now leading the Jets into a new era, Glenn is embracing the same principles that made Parcells a Hall of Fame coach: discipline, accountability, and culture.
“I can see this thing turning around, for sure, especially with Glenn, the type of coach he is,” Jets starting guard Alijah Vera-Tucker said of Glenn. “He praises physicality, but even more accountability. I think that’s very important for a head coach to do. I haven’t seen that a lot my first few years.”
A fiery, vocal presence on the field and in team meetings, Glenn has wasted no time setting the tone. He demands toughness and accountability while holding every one of his players to a lofty standard.
Parcells took over a doormat Jets team in the late 1990s and turned it into a contender. Glenn, now the head honcho of that same franchise, is chasing a similar turnaround – with his former coach still in his ear.