Aaron Glenn's career has come full circle.
In 1994, the New York Jets made Glenn a first-round pick. Nearly 31 years later, he takes the reins of a new era at Florham Park.
"I wear glasses now," the 52-year-old first-time head coach quipped to open his introductory press conference on Monday.
The energetic former Detroit Lions defensive coordinator effortlessly controls the room, commanding the audience. Glenn will have no trouble connecting with and motivating a locker room.
"Put your seatbelts on and get ready for the ride," he said, talking directly to his new players. "We are the freaking New York Jets, and we're built for this s---."
Glenn played his first eight years with the Jets, ultimately retiring after 15 seasons. When he first decided to get into coaching, he returned to New York in the scouting department. Glenn's journey took him to Cleveland, New Orleans and Detroit. Now he's back home to lead Gang Green after he was hired on Jan. 22.
"I wanted this job. I interviewed for a number of them, but I wanted this job," he said. "… I look forward to this. I look forward to it. It's going to be a great ride. It really is. There's nothing better than having your start here as a player, here as a scout, and now here as a head coach. And I'm ready for it."
The Jets haven't been to the playoffs since 2010, now five head coaches ago. The string of losing has beaten down even the most ardent of Jets fans. Glenn is here to end that brutal run, and he believes that his experience in New Orleans under Sean Payton and in Detroit with Dan Campbell has taught him how to build a winner from the bottom up.
"Sean taught me what sustained winning is all about," Glenn said. "Sustained winning. Dan Campbell, outstanding man. Going to Detroit with Dan, we were at the very bottom.
But you know what we did? We took them to the top. So here's the one thing, in my last nine years I was able to do is to take a team from the top and reach the pinnacle, and also be able to sustain that. That's what were going to bring here to this team."
For Glenn, the most important thing is bringing in the right type of players who align with the culture he and new GM Darren Mougey want to create.
"If I go back to my first two years, I think we were 2-14 and 1-15 the following year. Bill Parcells comes in, and he just totally brought a different mentality and different people," Glenn said on Monday. "To me that's what really changed the culture. Here's what I learned: I can stand in front of a group of men and give as many rah-rah speeches as I can, but culture is about people. Getting the right people in the building."
The most pressing question for Glenn's locker room makeup is under center, where quarterback Aaron Rodgers' future sits in question. Glenn said on Monday that the club is still working through the process of talking with Rodgers and deciding on how to handle the position.
"Aaron Rodgers will be talked about," Glenn said. "It will be talked about. We've already texted our communication with Aaron Rodgers. As we continue to look at the roster, we'll make decisions accordingly."
Later, owner Woody Johnson told reporters that he would "leave" the Rodgers decision to his new GM and coach, and has no plans to voice his opinion to his new power brokers, per The Athletic.
Glenn said his plan to recreate the proper culture in New York is to "set that structure then hold them accountable," noting that as a former player, he knows that's what they crave.
"The small things about this game is what really wins games," he said. "The smartest teams win games. Situational awareness wins games. It's our job as coaches to make sure we do that because that's the difference between winning and losing is the small things."
The Jets have been poor at the small things for a long time. Glenn has returned to end that streak of futility.
