Quarterback Vinny Testaverde and cornerback Aaron Glenn played on different sides of the ball during their four seasons together with the Jets. And although they had the usual interactions in the building, on the practice field and during the NFL season, Testaverde said that there was time in a special environment that a special relationship was solidified.
On the golf course.
"In the offseason, we played golf together," Testaverde, 61, told newyorkjets.com. "We got to know each other pretty well. That's where you learn a lot about people, at least in my experience on the golf course, especially, for me, in past years since I've been retired, but you learn about what kind of character they have.
"You learn about the person. You're talking with them all day. So you learn about their family. You learn how competitive they are, and Aaron is definitely competitive. We'd always talk smack back and forth and it'd be me and Aaron and a couple of the guys, Ray Mickens, and I'm just trying to think of who else was out there. So long ago, it's hard to remember everybody, but we had a group of guys. We just had a lot of fun and I just can't wait for him to get in there and start doing his thing, start getting to work."
Testaverde, a native of Elmont on Long Island, began his career in the NFL in 1987 as the No. 1 overall pick of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers out of the University of Miami. That was seven years before Glenn was selected in the first round (No. 12 overall) by the Jets out of Texas A&M in the 1994 NFL Draft. They joined forces under HC Bill Parcells for the 1998 season, with Bill Belichick overseeing the defense, and were together with the Green & White for 4 seasons.
"So when I first got there [after two seasons in Baltimore], obviously going against the defense every day in training camp he's one of the first guys, if not the first guy that pops out at me, because I'm seeing him in 7-on-7 drills, 1-on-1 drills, of course, team drills. So he was the shutdown corner, one of the best in the league. So every day in practice, if you wanted to get better as a receiver, you would go practice against Aaron Glenn, because he would make you better."
On the field and on the golf course, the respect and friendship between the QB and the CB continued to evolve. They each played 15 years in the NFL, an incredible feat of longevity in a physically and mentally demanding sport. After leaving the Jets, Glenn played on with Houston and Dallas, before finishing his career seeing limited playing time with Jacksonville and then New Orleans. Glenn was clearly going to school as his playing time was on the wane, preparing himself for the next step on his football journey -- which began as a scout for the Jets in 2012.
"Fifteen-year career, great career, then he moved into coaching," Testaverde said. "Sometimes former players don't always make the best coaches, right? We've seen some that haven't been successful and some that have, and I think with Aaron's pedigree, and forget about the playing career, but the coaching side of it, he's been through it all. He kind of started at the bottom and worked his way up. Scouting, he knows how to do that. He saw that side of it. He was a position coach. Then lastly, with the Detroit Lions. He was a defensive coordinator, and just take that team, for example, they built their way into the success they're having today.
"So, there's no doubt with where and who Aaron has coached with, and under, talking about Sean Payton [in New Orleans], he was coached by Bill Belichick and Bill Parcells, some of the greatest coaches that ever have been in the NFL and coached the game. So, I think he probably takes little bits and pieces of each of them and adds his own personality to it. And I think you're going to see a Jets organization that is going to surprise a lot of people and be successful in the next few years to come."
