Something has to change for Aaron Glenn and the Jets

LONDON — Two Super Bowl-winning Hall of Fame coaches called Aaron Glenn last week to give him support and some advice.

“Stay the course,” they told him.

Glenn appreciated Tony Dungy and Jimmy Johnson reaching out and sharing that message. That’s what Glenn intends to do.

He’s five games into his NFL head coaching career and still seeking his first win. Glenn took over a team that has missed the playoffs for 14 straight seasons. It’s going to be a process and apparently a long one because the cold reality is the Jets are worse than anyone expected.

They are the NFL’s only winless team. Their defense has shown no resistance. They have trailed by at least two touchdowns in the first half of four straight games. They have been sloppy with the football and undisciplined in racking up penalties.

Certainly, some things need to change for the Jets, who play the Broncos at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday.

The players are frustrated and tired, especially the ones who have been a part of the Jets’ losing culture for so long. The fans are beyond frustrated, understandably so considering all the time they’ve invested and all the heartache they’ve suffered.

Seeing the Jaguars 4-1 with first-time coach Liam Coen and the Patriots 3-2 under Mike Vrabel, who spurned the Jets for New England, just adds fuel to the fire.

It was after the Jets’ Week 4 loss in Miami that Dungy and Johnson called Glenn. They told him to keep doing what he’s doing and not to alter his beliefs on how to build the team and turn around the franchise.

“They've been here, and they understand the noise that's going to come from all over the place — from the fans, from the media,” Glenn said. “They're telling me because they see every one of my press conferences. They see what the players are saying. They're telling me, man, stay the course . . . That's something that we're going to do.”

Dungy started 0-5 with Tampa in 1996. The Bucs followed that with four straight winning seasons. Johnson lost his first eight games with Dallas in 1989 and finished 1-15. They made the playoffs three times over the next four years and won two Super Bowls.

Jets fans would sign up for that in a heartbeat. No one really knows if Glenn is the right coach to lead that type of metamorphosis. All anyone can grasp onto is hope that Glenn can rebuild a team because he’s been through it as a player and coach.

The Jets are coming off a distressing loss filled with red flags, though. They looked unprepared and lacked fight in falling behind 30-3 to Dallas. It’s the second time they faced that exact deficit this season.

Showing no resilience or resistance were bad signs five games into the season. Breece Hall’s fumble deep in Dallas territory late in the first half deflated the Jets and they never recovered. It led to Glenn saying he has to work on getting this team more mentally tough. That’s another bad sign.

“We are going to stay the course,” Glenn said. “We’re not going to waver. We're not going to let any of the outside noise start to get us to have issues between each other. Coaches and players, we're on the same page. Trust me when I tell you that. And we're going to continue to work our [butt] off until we get this thing fixed.”

The Jets are lacking leadership on and off the field. Linebacker C.J. Mosley is sorely missed. Speaking of defense, it’s been the most disheartening part of this team.

Coordinator Steve Wilks, like the Jets, is off to a bad start. The Jets have no takeaways, a total of three sacks in the last four games and are giving up far too many explosive plays. Glenn said he’s not changing the play-calling duties at this time.

Glenn isn’t going anywhere either. It was just about a year ago that Robert Saleh was fired after a loss in London with the Jets 2-3. Pushing Glenn out after one year is not the answer.

The Jets need stability. They also need wins. Glenn’s tough talk would resonate more if they had one. Staying the course is fine, but some things need to change.

By Al Iannazzone

al.iannazzone@newsday.comAl_Iannazzone

Al Iannazzone covers the Jets for Newsday after spending nearly two decades on the NBA beat with Knicks and Nets.