The first season of Aaron Glenn’s tenure as New York Jets head coach didn’t go according to plan, but the 2026 NFL Draft offers the entire organization the chance at a course correction.
In a lot of ways, Glenn was hired to replicate the success the Detroit Lions achieved during his time as head coach Dan Campbell’s defensive coordinator. However, the Jets didn’t intercept a pass last season, so obviously rebuilding the defense is a top priority for New York this offseason.
NFL Draft 2026 holds key to New York Jets’ defensive rebuild
NFL Draft
Texas Tech’s David Bailey looks to the sideline during the Big 12 Conference championship football game, Saturday, Nov. 6, 2025, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington.
Sitting with the No. 2 overall pick, the Jets are going to be able to select the No. 1 pass rusher on their board.
According to NFL Media’s Bucky Brooks, the Jets’ selection has the chance to follow a similar path to the Lions’ ascent built defensively around star edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson.
Brooks predicts the Jets will snag Texas Tech edge rusher David Bailey, and feel great about the selection.
“If Aaron Glenn sticks to the blueprint that he helped implement in Detroit,” Brooks writes, in his latest mock draft. “He will take Bailey to give the Jets an explosive pass rusher to create chaos off the edge (like former No. 2 overall pick Aidan Hutchinson does for the Lions).”
This could be as close to a best-case scenario as New York could draw up.
By pairing a high-motor finisher like David Bailey with a secondary now headlined by Minkah Fitzpatrick, New York wouldn’t just be adding a blue-chip prospect—they’d finally be establishing the defensive identity Glenn was hired to build.
NFL Draft, New York Jets
Dec 28, 2025; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Jets head coach Aaron Glenn reacts during the first quarter of the game against the New England Patriots at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images