"He knows something" - NFL fans speculate as Lions DC Aaron Glenn turns down Patriots

The 2025 NFL coaching carousel is truly up and running, with five teams on the lookout for a new head coach - the New Orleans Saints, New York Jets, Chicago Bears, Jacksonville Jaguars and the Las Vegas Raiders. All five teams have already started lining up interviews with potential candidates.

Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and his colleague, defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn are two of the hottest names in coaching circles this year, with both expected to land a job over the next few months.

The Patriots, who fired Jerod Mayo on Sunday evening, are set to interview Johnson on Friday (virtually, since the Lions are still in the playoffs) and also placed a request to interview Glenn. However, the Lions DC turned down that request, sparking speculation among NFL fans.

Here's what social media had to say about Glenn turning down the Pats, with one tweeting:

"He knows something. Like Johnson is already in."

Some fans believe that the Patriots have already narrowed their search down to two names - Ben Johnson and Mike Vrabel.

"Johnson to Patriots confirmed," one wrote on X.

"He knows they're going with Vrabel," another opined.

"Probably because Glenn knew the interview was a sham. Patriots going through the motions so they can hire Vrabel," a third wrote.

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2025 NFL head coach carousel: Projecting landing spots for Aaron Glenn, Ben Johnson

As things stand, we have five vacancies in the NFL and many candidates to fill those spots. Off top, the Chicago Bears job and the one over at the Patriots track to be the most appealing.

The Bears have a decent roster and have their QB of the future. The Patriots also have their QB of the future and will have well over $100 million in cap space next year. The fourth overall pick also offers a new coach the chance to draft some elite talent to compete next year.

Nevertheless, Ben Johnson seems more likely to land with the Las Vegas Raiders, who just fired Antonio Pierce and also GM Tom Telesco on Thursday. Johnson would likely be given a free hand to shape the Raiders in his image, should he choose to sign on the dotted line in Sin City.

That leaves Aaron Glenn to coach the New York Jets, who have a plethora of young talent like Garrett Wilson, Breece Hall, Sauce Gardner and Olu Fashanu.

Mike Vrabel to the Patriots makes too much sense to ignore, while we could very well see Pete Carroll back in the league with the Bears.

That leaves the Jaguars and the Saints. One of them could take a look at Kliff Kingsbury, whose Commanders offense has impressed this year. Kingsbury will likely take over playcalling duties, leaving other teams free to poach Klint Kubiak off their staff.

The Jaguars will then have to consider Brian Flores, Liam Coen or Dolphins DC Anthony Weaver.

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