Mike Tomlin, Jets chatter resurfaces after Aaron Glenn endures ugly loss to Bears

One day after the New York Jets suffered an ugly 23-12 loss at the Chicago Bears that dropped the Jets to 1-3 on the season, second-year New York head coach Aaron Glenn insisted that fans of the club "will see" his team "improve" through the remainder of the campaign. 

It sounds like Ralph Vacchiano of Fox Sports is among the noteworthy members of the NFL community who aren't buying what Glenn tried to sell.

Woody Johnson once again linked with Mike Tomlin

For an article published on Wednesday night, Vacchiano ranked Glenn second on the list of coaches who could be fired either during or after this season. 

"Glenn has to stop this spiral before it gets out of control," Vacchiano wrote. "If not, there will be enormous pressure on (team owner) Woody Johnson to bring in a new coach — maybe a high-profile one like Mike Tomlin — especially if they land yet another franchise quarterback, as expected, in the 2027 NFL draft."

Vacchiano mentioning Tomlin's name is interesting, as multiple reports surfaced in late August claiming that Johnson eventually hiring the former Pittsburgh Steelers head coach "would be viewed internally as a massive victory" for the Jets. While Jets reporters later hinted that Johnson hasn't yet given up on Glenn, those stories emerged before the Bears outgained the Jets 492 to 157 and had the ball for 42:45 in time of possession on Oct. 4. 

Aaron Glenn "under a microscope" amid latest losing season

"[The Jets] were basically a no-show against the Bears on Sunday, and Glenn’s decisions, time management, and reactions to criticism are back under a microscope again," Vacchiano added. "It’s a long season; they don’t have a very good quarterback (Geno Smith) and they’re already inundated with injuries."

Under Glenn, the Jets have gone 4-17 heading into this coming Sunday's home game against the 3-1 Cleveland Browns. Nevertheless, DraftKings Sportsbook had the Jets as 1.5-point favorites for that game as of Thursday morning.  

Former Jets quarterback Boomer Esiason still has ties to the franchise, and he said on Wednesday that he believes Johnson will stick with Glenn for the rest of the season. One wonders whether Esiason will sing a different tune if the Jets are 1-4 on Monday morning.