Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn had a simple response when asked why he turned down a request to interview with the New England Patriots.
“I’ve never felt anything against that organization,” Glenn told media members. “It just wasn’t the best situation for me.”
The Patriots ultimately hired Mike Vrabel as their next head coach, which was believed to be the plan all along.
They received significant pushback for rushing through interviews with two minority candidates, Byron Leftwich and Pep Hamilton, to satisfy the Rooney Rule, which states that teams must interview at least two external minority candidates for the job.
It’s hard to gauge how serious the Patriots were about interviewing with Glenn. Vrabel seemed like the team’s top option from the very beginning considering how fast they moved through the interview process.
They hired Vrabel exactly one week after firing Jerod Mayo. Glenn had nothing to gain from speaking with a team that already had its eye on someone else.