Aaron Glenn kicks off NY Jets coaching hires with an unexpected choice

NY Jets head coach Aaron Glenn has made his first official addition to his coaching staff with a hire that most probably weren't anticipating.

NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported Wednesday evening that the Jets have hired Detroit Lions tight ends coach Steve Heiden to be their offensive line coach. This comes hours after it was revealed that the team would not be retaining holdover OL coach Keith Carter.

Heiden is an interesting and unexpected addition to the Jets' coaching staff, at least in the role he was hired to fill. A former NFL tight end, Heiden has almost exclusively worked as a tight ends coach.

His experience working with Glenn in Detroit, however, makes him an obvious hire, even if his actual position title is surprising. Heiden will be one of the most important hires the Jets make this offseason.

Who is NY Jets OL coach Steve Heiden?

Heiden spent over a decade as a tight end in the NFL with the Los Angeles Chargers and Cleveland Browns. He retired due to injuries in 2011 and joined the Arizona Cardinals staff as an assistant coach just two years later.

The South Dakota State product was hired as an assistant special teams and tight ends coach in 2013 and would remain with the organization for a decade until he left to join the Lions in 2023.

Heiden's only experience as an offensive line coach came in 2018 when the Cardinals made him their assistant OL coach for a year before he returned to his typical tight ends coach role in 2019.

Despite his limited experience coaching the offensive line, Heiden’s resume is impressive. With over a decade as an NFL assistant and a background as a former player, he brings valuable experience and perspective to the role.

Heiden also helped develop Lions tight end Sam LaPorta, who set a then-record for catches by a rookie tight end in 2023 en route to a second-team All-Pro selection.

The Lions have also consistently had one of the best offensive lines in the NFL, so if Heiden had any influence in their success, that bodes well for his candidacy with the Jets.

Heiden's hire is an outside-the-box one for Glenn given his lack of experience coaching the offensive line, but his overall resume speaks for itself. As long as he isn't almost unanimously disliked by his players, he should be an upgrade over Keith Carter.

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