Nearly two decades before he coached alongside Aaron Glenn, Tanner Engstrand teamed up with Darren Mougey.
All three men will be together now in key roles for this new era of the Jets, as Glenn hired Engstrand to be his offensive coordinator, the team announced Friday evening.
Mougey, the newly hired general manager, met Engstrand in 2004, when both were backup quarterbacks at San Diego State. The starter at the time was Kevin O’Connell — now the head coach of the Vikings.
For Glenn — a first-time head coach with a defensive background — offensive coordinator is his most important staff hire.
So, it makes sense that he would entrust the job to a familiar face such as Engstrand, who was an offensive assistant who worked with tight ends and ascended to passing game coordinator for the Lions during the four years that Glenn was the team’s defensive coordinator.
The Jets were rebuffed by their first choice for offensive coordinator, SNY reported: Rams tight ends coach and pass game coordinator Nick Caley let it be known that he was not interested in the job.
Caley is on the same Rams’ staff as former Jets offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur, who was pushed out the door after two seasons (2021-22) and blamed for quarterback Zach Wilson’s lack of development.
Wilson’s career remained a disappointment after LaFleur’s exit and the quarterback’s trade to the Broncos.
Engstrand’s only offensive coordinator experience came in 2020, when he was with the XFL’s DC Defenders under longtime NFL quarterbacks coach Pep Hamilton.
Engstrand exclusively had been a college football assistant before going to the XFL and had been with the Lions ever since that one-year stint.
The Jets only can hope that Engstrand, 42, is able to come close to replicating the success he was just exposed to in Detroit.
The Lions led the NFL in scoring (33.2 points per game) and ranked second in total offense (409.5 yards per game).
Engstrand’s job should get easier if Mougey and Glenn decide to keep 41-year-old quarterback Aaron Rodgers — and Rodgers shares the sentiment to return and be receptive to learning a new offense.
If the Jets begin searching for a quarterback, then Engstrand’s prospect evaluation skills will be crucial.
The lingering question with Engstrand is why he became available to Glenn.
The Lions lost offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, who became head coach of the Bears and opted to pluck 28-year-old Decan Doyle from the Broncos to be his offensive coordinator instead of taking Engstrand with him.
To replace Johnson, the Lions chose to go outside the building and hire John Morton as their offensive coordinator instead of elevating Engstrand.
Morton, who was with the Broncos in 2023, was the Jets offensive coordinator under Todd Bowles in 2017.
When it became clear that Engstrand likely would be Jets-bound, the Lions moved quickly to hire former Stanford head coach David Shaw into Engstrand’s title (passing game coordinator).
The Jets began filling out parts of their defensive staff under coordinator Steve Wilks, too.
Glenn won’t be the only former NFL player on staff.
Aaron Curry (four seasons) will be the linebackers coach and Chris Harris (eight seasons) will be the pass game coordinator and defensive backs coach, per reports.
Curry, who once signed a six-year, $60 million contract as a rookie drafted No. 4 overall in 2009, coached inside linebackers for the Steelers last season.
Harris interviewed for the defensive coordinator position before Wilks was hired, according to ESPN. When he did not get that job, Harris settled for a very similar role to what he had with the Titans over the last two seasons.
The Jets also made official the previously reported addition of special teams coordinator Chris Banjo.
