Heading into the offseason, everybody knew that Ben Johnson had a very good chance of landing a head coaching gig, which meant the Detroit Lions would have to find a new offensive coordinator. On multiple occasions, I wrote about how I believed the Lions would simply promote passing game coordinator Tanner Engstrand to their OC position. As we now know, the Lions hired John Morton as their new OC, and Engstrand was poached by Aaron Glenn to be the OC for the New York Jets.
Why Aaron Glenn Poached Tanner Engstrand
While speaking at the NFL Scouting Combine, Aaron Glenn was asked about why he felt Tanner Engstrand was the right man for the job.
“Very, very smart,” Glenn said as quoted by Justin Rogers. “Was a huge part of that Detroit Lions offense. Listen, I know Ben Johnson got all the credit, but there were a number of people that around him, including Steve Heiden, who also have on the on the staff also. (Enstrand’s) going to do a really good job for us. He was the passing game coordinator there. And it’s time for him to be a coordinator, right? He’s paid his dues. He’s a hell of a coach. He’s done a good job for us in Detroit. He’s going to do a good, good job for us here.”
Did The Detroit Lions Make the Right Decision?
Though we don’t know for certain, one would assume that Lions head coach Dan Campbell did not offer the OC position to Tanner Engstrand, which ultimately made Engstrand’s decision to leave for a promotion with the Jets pretty easy.
Personally, I believe the Lions should have promoted Tanner Engstrand to OC rather than hiring John Morton, but because of each of their current situations, Morton will end up having more success.
