Denver Broncos complete interview with Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn
Aaron Glenn has made his pitch to be the next Denver Broncos coach.
The Broncos announced Thursday they completed their first head coaching interview with Glenn, the Detroit Lions' first-year defensive coordinator.
The Broncos traveled to Detroit for the interview, Denver's 9 News reported, and are scheduled to meet next with Green Bay Packers assistants Nathaniel Hackett and Luke Getsy.
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Glenn, 49, is considered a head coach-in-waiting. He possess many of the leadership qualities Broncos general manager George Paton said he wanted in his next head coach, but will have to overcome the Lions' 3-13-1 record — and his own inexperience — to get the job.
Glenn, who interviewed for the New York Jets head coaching vacancy last season as secondary coach with the New Orleans Saints, has been an NFL defensive coordinator for just one season.
The Lions finished 29th in the NFL in total defense and 31st in points allowed this season, but showed steady improvement while starting a slew of rookies amid significant injury problems.
Lions cornerback Amani Oruwariye said Glenn deserves some credit for his breakout season.
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"Just his love for the game and his level of knowledge, it’s remarkable," Oruwariye said. "Obviously, he’s played in the league, he’s done his thing really well. (Three)-time Pro Bowler, I think. So any kind of information I can get from him is valuable to me, so I just like picking his brain. He used to play DB and he was a DB coach so sometimes he misses getting actually hands on to coach the guys, so I just like pull him to the side, talk to him."
Glenn, who played 15 NFL seasons with five different teams, is vying to become the first Lions assistant to go directly into a head coaching job with another team since Chuck Knox went from Lions offensive line coach to head coach of the Los Angeles Rams in 1973.
Dick Jauron was the Lions' defensive coordinator in 2004-05, and finished the 2005 season as interim head coach when Steve Mariucci was fired. The Bills hired Jauron as head coach in 2006
Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions DC Aaron Glenn interviews with Denver Broncos
