The New York Jets don’t just have one of the NFL’s worst head coaches with Aaron Glenn — they have one of the NFL’s worst head coaches in the last decade with Aaron Glenn.
As the clock ticks down toward Glenn’s inevitable firing, one interesting name has emerged as a possible replacement: Former Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians, who led the Bucs to a Super Bowl win after the 2020 season.
Arians, 74, underwent open-heart surgery in February and recently told NFL insider Jordan Schultz he plans to come out of semi-retirement, where he’s spent the last four years serving in an advisory role for the Buccaneers — a professor emeritus sort of setup.
“Now that I’m all healthy again, I got the itch (to coach) again,” Arians told Schultz. “So we will see.”
With Arians’ bona fides, it wasn’t long before his name started popping up as a possible solution for the Jets, who have the longest streak without a playoff berth across all four North American professional sports leagues — they haven’t been in the postseason since 2010.
Heavy’s Paul Esden Expertly Breaks Down Arians
Heavy’s Paul Esden deftly broke down a possible Arians return and how that might look in New York.
“Arians would check two boxes that Glenn couldn’t when he was hired: an offensive-minded guy and an experienced head coach,” Esden wrote on November 13. “Arians has been a head coach for eight total seasons between his time with the Arizona Cardinals and the Bucs. During that stretch, Arians owns an 80-48-1 regular season record and a 6-3 record in the playoffs. He has won a world championship, has been named Coach of the Year twice, and has a long track record of success. It would be a risky hire. Arians has had complicated medical issues in his past; they seem to have been cleared up now, but they could come back at any point. He hasn’t coached in the league in five years. Not to be an ageist, but Arians is closer to the end of his journey than the beginning. This hire would not be a long-term fix.”
Bruce Arians Took Credit for Adding Baker Mayfield
Arians went on “The National Football Show” podcast in April 2025 and took credit for the Buccaneers landing current quarterback and 2-time Pro Bowler Baker Mayfield.
The Buccaneers signed Mayfield to a 1-year, $3 million contract in 2023 to replace Tom Brady; he signed a 3-year, $100 million contract before the 2024 season and a 3-year, $165 million extension on September 8.
“Yeah, that was one of my last decisions, you know, to get with Jason (Licht) and let’s go after this; I love this kid,” Arians said on April 21. “You know, when I was at CBS (in 2018), I did two (Browns games with Mayfield), went to Browns practice on Friday. That locker room loved that kid. I mean, loved him. And the way he competed in a Friday practice, I was like, ‘This is my kind of guy.’ ”
Ex-Bucs Head Coach Floated as Possible Jets Replacement