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Lions coordinators Ben Johnson, Aaron Glenn in demand as NFL coach hiring cycle starts
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- Lions coordinators Ben Johnson, Aaron Glenn in demand as NFL coach hiring cycle starts
The Chicago Bears fired head coach Matt Eberflus after a Thanksgiving loss to the Detroit Lions , and now they're looking at two of the men who helped greased the skids for Eberflus' departure as his potential replacement.
The Bears put in a formal request Monday to interview Lions coordinators Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn for their vacant coaching job, ESPN and NFL Network reported.
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Johnson, the mastermind of the NFL's highest-scoring offense in Detroit this season, has long been considered a frontrunner for a Bears team that spent the No. 1 pick in last year's draft on quarterback Caleb Williams and has a talented group of skill players around him led by receivers D.J. Moore , Keenan Allen and rookie Rome Odunze .
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Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson watches a play against the Chicago Bears during the first half at Soldier Field in Chicago on Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024.
Johnson acknowledged in December he has "a burning desire" to be a head coach after declining potential opportunities with the Washington Commanders and Carolina Panthers the past two years. Asked about Williams at the time, Johnson said he was impressed by the rookie quarterback but hadn't done a deep dive on his play.
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Williams completed 62.5% of his passes this season with 20 touchdowns and six interceptions. He did not throw a pick during a nine-game stretch from late-October to late-December that included both games against the Lions.
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"Listen, it's been difficult to sit down and just study every throw but plenty of crossover tape over the course of the year and there's no question this guy's talented," Johnson said. "I remember standing on the sideline last game and just you can hear the ball whistle by you. He's got quite a fastball and has some creativity to him, can extend plays and is accurate down the field as well. Like I said , I haven't really dove in and can tell you much more beyond that, but he's been impressive from afar."
Glenn, like Johnson, is considered one of the top coaching candidates on the market this season after working wonders with an injury-riddled defense for the Lions this fall. On Sunday, the 52-year-old coordinator designed a gameplan that held the Minnesota Vikings without a touchdown in a game that decided the NFC North title and No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs.
Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn talks with linebacker Jack Campbell during the first half against the Minnesota Vikings at Ford Field in Detroit on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025.
Glenn, 52, has interviewed with more than a quarter of the league for head-coaching jobs the past three seasons. He's a former NFL cornerback who played 15 seasons with five teams and like Lions head coach Dan Campbell has leadership qualities players rave about.
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"I think he does an amazing job leading us, keeping us accountable, calling people out when they need to be called out, teaching when he needs to teach, uplifting when he needs to uplift," Lions linebacker Alex Anzalone said Sunday. "Dan and AG are hand-in-hand as far as the best leaders I've been around."
As assistant coaches on playoff teams with a first-round bye, Johnson and Glenn are allowed to interview virtually with NFL teams beginning this week. The Lions finished 15-2 this season, tied for the best record in the NFL, and will play their first playoff game Jan. 18 or 19.
NFL teams cannot hold formal interviews with candidates until after the divisional round of the playoffs, beginning Jan. 20.
Currently, there are five head-coaching vacancies: The Bears, New York Jets , New Orleans Saints , New England Patriots and Jacksonville Jaguars .
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The Patriots, who went 4-13 with rookie Drake Maye at quarterback this season, also have put in an interview request for Johnson, and the Jets have put in a request for Glenn, according to Sports Illustrated and others.
Johnson is expected to be picky about his next landing spot, and may prefer to be paired with a familiar general manager like current Washington Commanders assistant GM Lance Newmark. Glenn played eight NFL seasons with the Jets and interviewed for their head coaching job before joining the Lions as defensive coordinator in 2021.
Dave Birkett is the author of the new book, " Detroit Lions : An Illustrated Timeline." Order your copy here. Contact him at dbirkett@freepress.com . Follow him on Bluesky, X and Instagram at @davebirkett .
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Lions' Ben Johnson, Aaron Glenn in demand as NFL hiring cycle starts
