Despite some rough results at times over his first three seasons as Detroit Lions' defensive coordinator, Aaron Glenn had the look of a future NFL head coach and multiple teams interviewed him after each season. It's a matter of time before he leaves the Lions for a head coaching job.
This season, the Lions have a top-tier defense by many measures. That they've been doing it lately, and will continue to do it, without Aidan Hutchinson is a testament to what Glenn is doing as much as the remaining talent stepping up. If that success is maintained from here on out, Glenn's head coaching resume will be further bolstered in-kind.
As head coaching openings come, via in-season firings or are expected to come after the season, two that Glenn has ties to from his playing days or as an assistant coach have easily surfaced as potential fits for him. The appeal of either of those jobs, at least for candidates who will have options, is easy to question though.
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A question is if Glenn will be a head coaching candidate who'll have his pick of options, since he's a defensive coordinator and not as "buzzy" as someone with roots on the offensive side of the ball might be. A secondary question is how selective he will be, though the presumed answer to that question is "very", since there are far worse things than staying in a good situation with the Lions for another year.
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As part of his weekly buzz column with Dan Graziano heading into Week 11, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler tapped into the growing buzz around Glenn as a head coaching candidate.
"Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn is generating more NFL buzz than in the past. His name comes up more often in league circles than I remember, and that's not just in relation to the Saints job, to which he has ties as a former assistant coach there. He has always had leadership traits, and now he has the proof of concept with Detroit's surging defense."
Glenn's leadership/head coaching traits have been fully backed by the results the Lions' defense has had this season. He was always going to be wanted for multiple interviews, again, but the upcoming hiring cycle now feels a little different than previous hiring cycles.
Glenn will be more than a token candidate for any head coaching job he interviews for, and the odds he leaves the Lions after this season seem to be growing by the day.