The New York Jets need to go big this offseason.
They need to go bold.
Can the Jets do it in a way that is enough to end their 15-year playoff drought?
And is it possible for fans to feel good about the organization’s chances of pulling it off?
For any hope to be built ahead of the upcoming season, Gang Green must add an infusion of talent to the roster on both sides of the ball. Through free agency and the draft, the team must be willing to make bold decisions to improve the organization.
On all counts, it seems like that is what head coach Aaron Glenn and general manager Darren Mougey are prepared to do.
But their plan could confuse fans this year—not because of their actions, but the process that led them to this point, to begin with.
Jets’ offseason plan
The prevailing theory in league circles this offseason is that the Jets will be bringing in players familiar with Glenn’s coaching style and schematic approach, especially on defense.
Former Detroit Lions players like linebacker Alex Anzalone, defensive linemen Marcus Davenport and D.J. Reader, and cornerback Rock Ya-Sin all make perfect sense for the Jets to target in that case.
Not only are they former Lions, but three of them (save for Ya-Sin) played under Glenn when he was running Detroit’s defense. Most fans and analysts wouldn’t be opposed to that line of thinking. Infusing a culture in an organization is easier when the coach has players who are familiar with his system.
That isn’t the confusing part.
What is difficult to comprehend is why it took Glenn and the Jets so long to enact that plan.
Last offseason, the Jets brought in players and coaches who did not seem to fit with Glenn’s vision. Glenn and defensive coordinator Steve Wilks ran two different styles of defenses throughout their careers. The coaching staff didn’t quite know what they wanted their identity to be.
Well, Wilks lasted less than 15 games on the job, and now Glenn is on the hot seat.
Had the Jets focused on building around Glenn’s scheme from the start, perhaps the team’s development, especially on defense, would have looked a lot different. Instead, they wasted an entire year.
It was a serious misstep that puts Glenn in a no-win situation going into 2026. Glenn has to hit the reset button on developing a new scheme from scratch, but he is also under pressure to deliver a significant improvement in the Jets’ win total, or else the franchise will be looking for a new head coach.
Glenn is right to bring in coaches who can help him establish his vision. The issue is why it took him until now to come to that understanding.
Now, he has no room for error. And it’s clear the head coach is going to go down swinging, with his own scheme and his own players.
Time will tell if it’s just a year too late.