New York Jets coach Aaron Glenn is tapping back into his Detroit Lions roots. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Detroit’s former defensive coordinator is hiring Lions assistant tight ends coach Seth Ryan as his new passing game coordinator.
This move not only signifies a reunion for Ryan and Glenn but also marks Ryan’s return to New York, as he finished his high school football career in New Jersey while his dad, Rex, was the head coach of the New York Jets from 2009 to 2014.
After high school, Ryan would go on to play wide receiver for Clemson (2013-16), but it wasn’t long before he followed his father’s (and uncle Rob’s) footsteps by entering coaching. In 2019, Ryan was hired by Los Angeles Chargers coach Anthony Lynn as an offensive quality control coach. When Lynn joined the Lions as their offensive coordinator in 2021, Ryan followed him to Detroit as an assistant wide receivers coach.
While Ryan worked directly under wide receivers coach Antwaan Randle-El (current Bears’ WR coach and assistant head coach) from 2021-2024, he was also given special assignments from offensive coordinator Ben Johnson (Bears head coach), including the creation and incorporation of trick plays. Here’s Johnson sharing his thoughts on Ryan and a few other position coaches in 2024:
“I think we’ve got position coaches that are future coordinators and future head coaches, and I think we’ve got some really good young coaches that are going to be ready to be position coaches sooner rather than later, and I’m saying all that because when I see a play like the one we had in the game last week not only come to life and get executed like it did, but get the publicity that it did, really (Assistant WRs Coach) Seth Ryan, (Assistant OL Coach) Steve Oliver and (Assistant QBs Coach) J.T. Barrett, they’ve been in charge of our specials for not just this year, but for the last few years, and there’s a reason why we have probably a little higher success rate for those special plays, and they’re a big reason why. They have a ton of creativity, they bring a lot of ideas to the table, so I really wanted to start off here today by giving them a shoutout. They’ve been doing a great job here for the last three years, and they’re certainly deserving of more responsibility, not only here, but maybe elsewhere as well, wherever that opportunity unfolds.”
In 2025, the Lions shifted Ryan to assistant tight ends coach to further diversify his resume. When tight ends coach Tyler Roehl left to become the Iowa State offensive coordinator this offseason, Ryan was considered on a short list of possible replacements. The Lions ended up hiring Oliver as their new tight ends coach.
While it’s not clear whether Ryan opted for New York over the Lions TE job, or accepted the job after the Lions promoted Oliver. In the end, it’s not really an important detail, as both coaches have been on track for greater responsibilities for some time now, as noted by Johnson above.
As of right now, the Lions only appear to have a few spots open on their coaching staff—most notably assistant offensive line coach (Oliver’s old job) and assistant tight ends coach (Ryan’s previous position)—but it’s possible they already have people in mind for those roles. The Lions often announce all of their changes at once, so stay tuned for more updates as they come in, and you can follow along with all the latest Lions coaching news here.
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