Jim Cerny
Aaron Glenn is pretty much a franchise icon as far as the New York Jets go. But the former stud cornerback may not last long in his current role as head coach of the Jets if they replicate last season’s three-win trainwreck.
Things couldn’t have gone worse for Glenn in his first season running the show on the Jets sideline. Much of it was self-inflicted — Glenn had a miserable debut season as head coach. But he had a pretty lousy roster to work with, that only got worse when Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams were traded mid-season, Justin Fields flopped as QB1, and standout receiver Garrett Wilson missed the final 10 games with a knee injury.
General manager Darren Mougey’s done a pretty solid job building the Jets back up this offseason, and Glenn appears to have learned a bit from his many mistakes in 2025.
So, still without a franchise quarterback, what will it take for Glenn to keep his job in 2027, when the Jets should be able to pick their QB of the future, and fill other holes with three first-round picks at their disposal?
“I think they’re going to save Aaron Glenn’s job,” Ryan Wilson of CBS Sports declared Monday. “Look, let’s be real. I think seven wins could be on the table, best-case scenario. I think that would be enough for Aaron Glenn [to come back in 2027].”
The Jets did win seven games in each of the 2022 and 2023 seasons under coach Robert Saleh. The tortured franchise hasn’t reached the playoffs in 15 years, nor had a winning season since 2015, when they were 10-6 but failed to qualify for the postseason. Since 2011, they’ve won as many as seven games six times.
NFL expert explains why there’s reason to believe Jets will be better in 2026
So, what makes Wilson believe these Jets can win seven in 2026 and keep Glenn employed?
“No team has done more this offseason to get better,” Wilson stated. “They crushed it in the draft, they got (tight end) Kenyon Sadiq in the middle of the first round, they got (edge rusher) David Bailey at the top (No. 2 overall), they came back [into the first round] and got (wide receiver) Omar Cooper Jr. I think this defense is going to be really good. And if we see Geno Smith like he was a few years ago (Pro Bowl quarterback for the Seattle Seahawks in 2022 and 2023), not last year’s Geno Smith (led NFL with 17 interceptions playing for the Raiders), … he was balling out.”
The Jets dipped into their past to bring Smith and linebacker Demario Davis back this season. They also re-signed star running back Breece Hall, who’s coming off his first 1,000-yard season, and traded for Minkah Fitzpatrick to stabilize their defensive backfield.
They’re not going to scare the best teams in the league. But the Jets should be much better in 2026 than they were a year ago.
“So, I think seven wins is on the table. I think they can save Aaron Glenn’s job,” Wilson pointed out. “But listen, if they have two wins by Thanksgiving, then Aaron Glenn might be working with us … at that point.”
