I have to admit something.
I’ve really struggled the past two years at my job. Actually, I’ve more than struggled. I’ve been one of the worst sports writers in the country. I’ve written poorly, I’ve blown deadline and I was so bad at my job that last year I cost a co-worker his job. I did show some improvement late last year, but in almost every measurable way, I was just plain bad.
So what would you say if I told you the Free Press gave me a contract extension?
I can almost see your finger hovering over that “cancel subscription” button at Freep.com.
Now what if I told you that I’m not speaking about myself at all? I’m speaking about Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn, who, despite presiding over one the NFL’s worst defenses the past two seasons, reportedly received a multi-year contract extension from the Lions.
Yes. Multi.
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Some of Glenn’s contract extension is pro forma. He was already under contract this season and the extension was probably done to keep him from looking like a lame duck, especially after NFL Network reported last month that offensive coordinator Ben Johnson was given “an enhanced contract that features a large raise.”
But here are the hard, cold facts about Glenn’s tenure. Under his leadership, the Lions’ defense ranked last in yards allowed and 30th out of 32 teams in points allowed last season. And it wasn’t a one-year anomaly. The season before that — Glenn’s first as a coordinator — the Lions were 29th in yards allowed and 31st in points allowed.
Yes, the defense improved after the Lions fired defensive backs coach Aubrey Pleasant in October 2022. Over the final 10 games, the defense held six opponents under 20 points and ranked 11th in points allowed.
It still makes for a pretty bleak LinkedIn profile, let alone a résumé that somehow merits interview opportunities for a promotion to head coach before a vote of confidence in returning to the same job.
Before I go further, let me say for the record that I like Glenn. I think he has the right temperament as a coach and as a leader. In full disclosure, I support giving an opportunity to historically underrepresented and marginalized people in all walks of life. Black coaches haven’t been hired nearly often enough in the NFL, so I hope Glenn improves and gets a real, honest interview for a head coaching job in the future.
But this season is too important for the Lions to be worried about politics or choosing to take the most generous view of the glaring struggles of one of the team’s most important coaches.
So why did the Lions give Glenn an extension?
Dan Campbell might shed some light on that when he speaks next week at the scouting combine. But I doubt he’ll go into much meaningful detail. He’ll likely pepper his answers with rah-rah talk like, “I believe in A.G.,” and will no doubt cite the improvement over the final 10 games.
Glenn deserves credit for that. Even though safeties coach Brian Duker took over coaching the defensive backs after Pleasant’s firing, I’m sure Glenn, a former DBs coach himself and a three-time Pro Bowl cornerback, helped Duker succeed.
But I’m not so sure Glenn had much to do with the defense’s biggest area of improvement: Defensive line play. The line, especially the players on its perimeter, delivered nine more sacks this season, thanks to rookies Aidan Hutchinson, James Houston and Josh Paschal.
Credit for that goes almost entirely to defensive line coach Todd Wash, who oddly left last week to take the same job with the Carolina Panthers. I can’t speak to his motivations, but maybe the former Division II head coach wanted a clearer path to becoming a coordinator again, after he led the Jaguars’ defense from 2016-20.
That’s a big loss for the defense and an emerging defensive line that has the potential to be elite, especially when Brad Holmes does the right thing and trades up to draft Georgia’s Jalen Carter. Wash is a good coach, and continuity is important for developing young players.
I’ve written before that this season will be the Lions’ window to win — and possibly a brief one if Johnson leaves. That means they can’t afford to hope for the best from any area of concern, whether it’s a player or a defensive coordinator. They must take decisive action when it comes to addressing a problem.
So far, Campbell has been impressive in this regard. He’s made tough calls to fire coaches on his staff, such as Pleasant and 2021 offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn. The question is whether he’ll have the courage to do so again, if he needs to, with Glenn.
That’s a hard question to answer because Campbell and Glenn have a unique relationship and a strong personal bond. They’re two Texas kids who played for the same college, coached together with the Saints and have important formative ties to Bill Parcells and Sean Payton. That’s what worries me: It’s a strong bond that’s maybe a little too strong.
In October, the Lions’ defense showed all the fight and fortitude of wet toilet paper taking on a cannonball in a 48-45 loss to the Seattle Seahawks. After the game, I hinted at firing Glenn and asked Campbell if he could separate his admiration for a coach and remain objective enough to fire him if he needed to.
“I’ve had to do this before,” he said, “and I’m not afraid to make a hard decision if I really believed that’s where it was the cause of it, and I don’t believe it is.
“I believe that Aaron Glenn is the right man for the job and he gives us our best — he gives us our best hope, our best option to run this defense. I just do.”
As a person, I admire Campbell for standing by his friend. As a dispassionate observer and analyst who has seen the Lions make too many obvious mistakes over the years, Campbell’s dogmatic answer bothers me. It makes me wonder if he would have the conviction and courage to fire Glenn.
I hope it doesn’t come to that. Maybe Glenn will find his footing, and his defense will finally gain some traction in his third year.
But in my experience, it usually doesn’t take that long for coaching excellence to reveal itself. Someone usually knows how good they’re going to be at their job after a couple of years. If they haven’t proven themselves by then, isn’t it better if everyone admits the truth and moves on before it’s too late to save a season that has the potential to be special?
Contact Carlos Monarrez: cmonarrez@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @cmonarrez.