Winning Isn't Aaron Glenn's Only Priority When Jets Face Titans in Week 1

There's more than meets the eye.

Head coach Aaron Glenn isn't hiding his expectations for the Jets' 2026 campaign. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Aaron Glenn understands the task at hand. He understood it when he was a first-round pick back in 1994.

He knows it even more now as he prepares for his second season as head coach of the Jets.

After a dismal first season in which the Jets won just three games, Glenn has made the goal for 2026 much simpler than in previous years.

"Obviously winning," Glenn said. "I'm excited going into our first week of a real game. Our guys will be ready, the coaching staff will be ready and we're all looking forward to this one."

Winning may seem like an obvious goal for the Jets, but that might be easier said than done. They're on a 15-year playoff drought and have failed to finish above .500 in each of the last 10 seasons as well.

What is obvious is not always easy.

And that's why, when the Jets take the field on Sunday to battle the Titans in Nashville, the organization is aware of more than just winning Week 1 and dealing with a former face of the team.

Pressure is high for Aaron Glenn to beat Robert Saleh to open season

Glenn enters his second season under enormous pressure as head coach. Outside of winning just three games, he also has to take on his predecessor, Titans head coach Robert Saleh, to open the season.

Saleh went 20-36 in three and a half years with the organization. He was fired five games into the 2024 season in a decision that has carried plenty of controversy for the organization since. While some national pundits see this as a chance for Saleh to get his "revenge" on the people who fired him, Glenn knows he'll be coaching for the honor of the people who gave him the opportunity for the top job.

"It's a game that we're going out there to win, and it doesn't matter who it is," Glenn said. "Our job is to go out there and play this game and be the best that we can be on every play and to go out there and win a game, hands down. Nothing else is to be thought of, and that's how I look at it."

Jets HC Aaron Glenn knows that squeaking by the Titans with a win won't be good enough in Week 1. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Plenty of players on the Jets roster understand the importance of winning Week 1's game. Not only would it carry favor with a disgruntled fanbase looking for any sign to give up on the current staff, but it would also set the tone for things finally changing for the future of the organization.

It goes beyond Aaron Glenn

For players like wide receiver Garrett Wilson, the obvious goal is winning games well with a chance to end a playoff drought longer than any other stretch in team history.

“I mean, I think it should happen, I’ll say that. It’s our job to play ball and do it," Wilson said.

Wilson is among the many players on the team who have seen some of the lowest points of the franchise over the last few years. This year, though, the receiver sees changes beyond just bringing in better talent.

He sees New York's "winning" goal as something attainable—more than any other year before.

“It ain’t like you go have a season and then don’t talk about it. We all love this game; we all expect to win every time we take the field," Wilson said. "After we don’t, that’s all that clouds your mind. All of a sudden, you think the day wasn’t good, the week wasn’t good. That’s the reality of our lives. We’re trying to get rid of that.” 

The Jets need to walk before they run, taking it one game at a time. If this will truly be their first winning season in a long time, that all starts with how Glenn & Co. handle Sunday's Week 1 meeting with Saleh's Titans.

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