Aaron Glenn is in his second year as defensive coordinator for the Detroit Lions and right now has them on track to give up nearly 600 points this season. But he’s confident that he can avoid that dubious distinction.
Speaking to the media on Thursday, Glenn expressed confidence that the Lions defense would turn things around. He made it clear that the Lions are going to get the mistakes fixed.
“I look at this like this: I mean, these couple games doesn’t tell my story,” Glenn said, via ProFootballTalk. “My track record speaks for itself and I’m going to continue to let that speak. So we’re going to get this thing fixed, we’re going to get this thing moving forward, our guys are going to respond, our coaches are going to respond and things are going to be alright.”
Unfortunately, Glenn’s message of letting his track record “speak for itself” might make some Lions fans nervous. While he enjoyed a lot of success developing defensive backs on the New Orleans Saints between 2016 and 2020, his success stories as a full defensive coordinator with the Lions are few and far between.
The Lions made Aaron Glenn one of their first big hires when they brought on Dan Campbell last season. He was tasked with turning around a defense that had ranked dead last in defense in 2020.
While Glenn was able to avoid letting the Lions finish last in points allowed last season, the team only improved to 31st in points allowed and 29th in yards allowed.
In 21 games at the helm, Glenn’s defense has allowed at least 27 points 13 times – more than.
The Lions may believe in Glenn, but they can only afford to be so patient before a change becomes a necessity.