Detroit Lions: Strong staff provides hope for post-Stafford life
By Tejas Bedi
A look at the Defensive Coaches the Detroit Lions have added.
Aaron Glenn and Aubrey Pleasant were hired to lead the new Lions defense, which has a lot of work to do after the disastrous last regime. It might require a few years to get back to an above-average defense, but the Lions should expect at least some improvements on that side of the ball. Hopefully, the Lions got the right guys for the job.
Glenn will be joining Campbell’s staff after working together in New Orleans, where Glenn was the secondary coach. Glenn joined the New Orleans staff after a decorated career in the NFL, where he was selected to three All-Pro teams.
Glenn coached both Marshon Lattimore and Marcus Williams, who contributed at a high level from their rookie years. Glenn’s success did not go unnoticed as he interviewed for the Jets’ head coaching job and was reportedly offered the defensive coordinator job for the Jaguars and the Bears. Glenn is definitely a rising star in the coaching world and should be a head coach if he can turn around the Detroit defense.
Aubrey Pleasant is another up and comer joining the Lions staff as the defensive backs coach and passing game coordinator. He was the cornerback coach for the Rams, where he coached Jalen Ramsey, who was the best corner in football last season.
Ramsey had high praise for Pleasant and credited him for his stellar play. Several people even thought he could be the man to replace Brandon Staley as the defensive coordinator for the Rams. Pleasant should be great for Amani Oruwariye and Jeff Okudah’s development and has the upside to replace Aaron Glenn if he is offered a head coaching position.
Jalen Ramsey also had high praise to Rams CBs coach Aubrey Pleasant: "In my opinion, this is the best body of work that I've put out in the NFL, and a lot of that is thanks to him." Said Pleasant "for sure" has the skillset to get looks as a defensive coordinator.
— Stu Jackson (@StuJRams) January 17, 2021
Both defensive coaches have a tall task ahead of them with the state of the defense currently, but there is some reason for hope. Both coaches are highly respected and developed stars on the defensive side of the ball.
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If they can acquire some talent and develop young players like Oruwariye, Okudah, Tracy Walker, and Julian Okwara, this defense has a chance to be middle of the pack.
Luckily for them, the bar for the defense is incredibly low, coming off the worst season in franchise history.
The Matthew Stafford news was a big blow to many Lions fans who recall the time before him filled with the likes of Joey Harrington and Jon Kitna behind center for the Lions.
Despite this news, there is definitely hope with their string of new hires as they try to navigate post-Stafford life.
Ideally, Dorsey will find a quarterback as he did with Aaron Rodgers, Patrick Mahomes, and Baker Mayfield. Agnew can identify free agents to bolster the multitude of weak spots all along the roster.
Lynn and Staley can revamp the run game and help the new quarterback gain his footing in the league, and Glenn and Pleasant can turn around one of the worst defenses in history starting from the secondary.
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Obviously, on paper and in real life are very different things, but with everyone’s track record, there are definite reasons for hope.