LIONS DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR AARON GLENN QUOTE SHEET

January 4, 2024

Opening Statement: “Tough loss. One of those things that happens in this League. The one thing that we do a really good job of as a team, man as an organization, is we move on quickly and we go to the next task at hand. And our next task at hand is Minnesota, so all hands on deck. Our guys are looking forward to the challenge. We, as coaches, are looking forward to the challenge. We’ll be ready to go.”

On how critical it is for a defense’s overall performance to take away an offense’s best weapon: “Well, everyone has a different philosophy on that, and my philosophy is always to try to do that. But here’s what I do know, I am a realist and I do know some of these guys are going to – they’re going to make plays. I mean, you look at what (Vikings WR Justin) Jefferson did, man we had him doubled on a number of occasions and he just went up there and he made the play. We talked about that the last time we played him. You look at (Cowboys WR) CeeDee Lamb, and listen I know everybody sees the 227 yards, but there were 92 on one play that shouldn’t have happened. We missed a tackle on another one which resulted in 30-something yards. So, a lot of his bulk yards came in that situation. And then we have to win our one-on-ones, alright, because the thing that I do know, we’re best and we’re just going to try to be aggressive on people and I think that’s when we play our best. And our guys like playing that way. So, listen, we’ve got to win our one-on-ones, but we also – when we’ve got a guy doubled, we’ve got to take him out.”

On if being more aggressive means they need to be more physical at the line of scrimmage: “All the above, all the above. Physical at the line, be attacking with our play-calls. And also, when we are just playing true full-man rush, man just being attacking with our full-man rush and guys beating one-on-ones. And then guys going up there and challenging receivers.”

On the risks of challenging a player on the line of scrimmage from his perspective as a former NFL cornerback: “Oh, getting beat. Yeah, I mean that’s any receiver. I mean, listen, in this League, when you play aggressive, I mean some people call it risk-reward, but it’s a fact that you went all the way to have that mindset. And listen, as a corner, man things are going to happen out there. You’re going to get beat. But man, it’s how you react to the next plays that come up, and to me that’s the most important thing. And our philosophy has always been, man we want to limit points. And I thought we did a pretty good job of that against Dallas. And we want to continue to do that. That’s the number one thing we try to do for the most part. And listen, we know there are some good players in this League, and we do everything we can to take that player out. And our guys just have to go up there and just get this job finished.”

On what has fueled the six takeaways the defense has had in the last two games: “Yeah, listen, you’ve got to credit our players on that. They’re understanding exactly what’s coming to them. They’re being aggressive like we just talked about as far as attacking the football. They’re looking to punch the football out at any given time. And it’s a mentality. And I told our guys the other day, man it’s becoming the DNA of ours because it happened last year, probably about mid-season. Now, we started a little late, alright, it happened about the last five games, but man our guys really understand that. And it helps us as a team, as far as wins and losses too. So when we win that turnover battle, usually we come out with a win, so we want to continue to do that.”

On how well Lions S Ifeatu Melifonwu has been performing at the line of scrimmage and in the backend: “Well, listen and I said this the last time we talked about this player, coming from corner, to being safety, man that’s a transition and there’s a number of things that he has to learn. And I think he’s starting to really understand that position in totality. So, not only is he understanding from a backend perspective, but he also understands where he fits in the paint, also. And man, with the help of (Lions LB) Alex (Anzalone), (Lions LB) Jack (Campbell), (Lions LB Derrick) Barnes, all those guys, all those guys are working together, he really understands that. And he understands exactly how to blitz also, and that’s really one of the strong points. You see it happening in practice and he’s just transitioning that from practice over to the field.”

On what the sacks Lions DL Aidan Hutchinson has gotten in the past few weeks does for him moving forward: “For you guys to stay off his back. That’s what it does. Because the things you guys really don’t look at, we see as coaches, so kudos to him.”

On if he thinks Lions DL Aidan Hutchinson has been pushing to record sacks these last few weeks: “Aidan was being Aidan. He was being Aidan. And he’s going to do things with the defense for us to be successful. And sometimes, he has to be a guy that’s going to have to take up blocking for somebody else to go. And sometimes, we’re going to put him in a position for him to go and go make his plays. And that’s what’s so good about that player. He’s selfless and he’s going to do whatever it takes for us as a team to win. And he doesn’t listen to all the outside noise. He gets that. I mean, I told you, once you get in this League, especially the pick he was at. Two things he is going to have to worry about, those expectations are one of them and he gets it.”

On what he thinks the team has in young players like Lions DL Brodric Martin and Lions CB Steven Gilmore: “Developmental players. That’s exactly what they are, that’s exactly what they are.”

On what specifically he has seen from Lions DL Brodric Martin and Lions CB Steven Gilmore in their development: “In practice, that’s exactly what we’re looking for in those guys. I mean, the one thing about Gilly, and I think we all saw this here in training camp, he’s a guy that can get the ball back and he’s doing that in practice also. But, man, there are other guys that we have that are playing. I mean, it’s hard to just play everybody. Same thing with Brodric. I mean, he’s a guy that came from a smaller school. And man, I said this before, the things that he has to understand, man how to use his hands, how to – pad level and it’s hard for a man that’s about 6’ 7” to do that. So, he has to continue to work on those things and our coach is doing a good job of working with him on that.”

On if he likes the futures of Lions DL Brodric Martin and Lions CB Steven Gilmore: “Absolutely, absolutely. You’re looking at the same thing with (Lions S Ifeatu Melifonwu) Iffy. I mean, Iffy is what? Three years and now you’re starting to see the fruits of his labor starting to show up. And listen, everybody’s timetable is different. Listen, we all wish that guys can come in as a rookie and they could hit it like (Lions TE Sam) LaPorta did, they could hit it like (Lions LB) Jack (Campbell) did, but sometimes it takes a while. And listen, we love those guys. And we think those guys are going to be good players and we’re going to continue to work with them.”

On what the team has gained from having Lions CB Emmanuel Moseley around while he rehabs: “Man, let me tell you something, that player – that person, take the player out, that person is a really caring person. He cares about his teammates. He wants to see his guys do well. Man, you sit there and you watch him in the meetings and how he talks and how he interacts with everybody that, man you want that guy to be around because he’s a vet and he’s been around. He’s been around winning. He’s been around winning, and that’s huge for us, as an organization to have guys like that around in the building even when they have these injuries. So, man, I’m so appreciative of that player always wanting to be around, and then imparting his wisdom into some of the young guys that we have. (Lions CB Steven Gilmore) Gilly, for example, because he latches on. Gilly has latched onto E-man quite a bit.”

On what Lions CB Kindle Vildor did to catch his eye in practice weeks ago to earn the opportunity to play these past few weeks: “Yeah, the thing is, he’s competing his butt off man, he’s really competing. And that’s what you want as a corner. He understands the defense. Listen, when he got here, it took him a while to get it down, just like anybody. But once he got it down, man he knew exactly what we were looking for and he’s out there competing his butt off.”

On how he thinks Lions CB Kindle Vildor has performed these last few weeks: “He’s been serviceable, man. Listen, the thing is he’s provided us with a veteran that’s been around that’s played. I mean, he started in this League for quite a bit, alright, with Chicago, so I look forward to seeing him get better each week.”

On how he makes sure Lions DB C.J. Gardner-Johnson remains patient throughout the time he has missed due to injury: “Well, he has no choice. That’s what he has to do. So, listen, we know that player wants to go out there and play. I mean, even when he was down and he was hurt, he wanted to go play. That’s just how he’s wired. But he understands the process also. So, obviously you have to talk to him and keep him at bay, but he gets it, he gets it. And when he gets his chance to go out there and play, he’s going to do a good job for us.”

On how Lions DL Tyson Alualu performed against the Cowboys and how valuable it has been to have a veteran like him on defense: “Thirty-six years old. Listen, he did a really good job for us. You’re talking about somebody that’s going to go in there and battle and fight. That’s who he is, that’s who he’s been. He’s been on a number of teams. He’s able to impart his wisdom on some of the young guys that we have, so I’m glad that we have him. And I look forward to him continuing to teach some of these guys. I mean, the thing is, I’m glad that (Lions DL Alim McNeill) Mac’s going to have a chance to play next to him and those guys will go out there and battle. That’s what I’m looking forward to seeing.”

On if it is important to give Lions DB C.J. Gardner-Johnson reps this week along with Lions S Ifeatu Melifonwu and Lions S Kerby Joseph so they can figure out everyone’s roles: “Listen, I agree with that. And listen, all three of those guys are going to play because they’re all good players. And the one thing that we try to do as a defense is make sure we have our best players out on the field. Will they all three be on the field at the same time? Possibly. Will somebody be down? Possibly. But they’re all going to play, and you’ll see that.”

On if Lions LB Derrick Barnes was worried about a roughing the passer penalty on his blitz in Dallas’s end zone against the Cowboys: “Did you ask him? Ask him. I didn’t do it. Ask him. You’re asking me something that he needs to tell you.”

On the coaching point on Lions LB Derrick Barnes’s blitz against the Cowboys: “Go finish the play.”