The New York Jets found their new head coach for the foreseeable future in former Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn. And unfortunately for Lions fans, Glenn has not left Detroit empty-handed.
On paper, Glenn faces a difficult proposition in taking the vacant Jets head coaching position. For the last nine seasons, the Jets have failed to get over the .500 mark.
As Glenn looks to build his own culture in New York, he seemingly has big plans of building a mini-Lions coaching staff in New York.
According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the Jets agreed to terms on a deal that will make Lions tight ends coach Steve Heiden their new offensive line coach.
The #Jets agreed to terms with #Lions TE coach Steve Heiden as their new offensive line coach, per source.
With Tanner Engstrand the favorite to come aboard as offensive coordinator, Aaron Glenn is building out his own version of Detroit’s offense in New York. pic.twitter.com/XV15TQYdMs
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) January 29, 2025
On top of this addition, the Jets have also been heavily linked to Lions passing game coordinator Tanner Engstrand, who has been rumored as a top candidate for their vacant offensive coordinator position.
For the Jets, it sure seems like bringing in multiples pieces of the Lions coaching staff would be a great move considering how excellent they have been in recent years.
Unfortunately for the Lions, this continues the complete ravaging of their coaching staff since their loss in the Divisional Round to the Washington Commanders, losing just shy of ten assistant coaches already this offseason.
Only time will tell how this move potentially affects either the Jets or the Lions moving forward. But on paper, it sure seems like the gap may be closing between these two teams based purely on the coaching staffs of the two organizations.
