Heading into the 2019 season, the Jets were looking for an experienced tight end, and Ryan Griffin, who had played six seasons for Houston, was a tight end looking for a team.
"I had just been released from the Texans and the Jets, specifically (GM) Joe Douglas, contacted my team on day one of my free agency," said Griffin, who was Houston's sixth-round draft choice out of the University of Connecticut in 2013. "At that time, I believe Chris Herndon was unavailable for the first quarter of the season (because the NFL suspended him after testing positive for a banned substance).
"I feel like Joe was honest even before I signed, that I would immediately have a chance to come in and compete for that starting job. Obviously, they had Chris in the waiting. He had just come off a promising rookie season. But because he was unavailable, they needed a plug and play, someone who has some starts under his belt, and some snaps that meant something on the field.
"Joe was pretty upfront about that when I came in, that they would need some veteran leadership in a young room. And beyond even when Chris did return, they would still need me in the fold just to kind of settle that room down. I think it ended up working out."
It worked out with second-year quarterback Sam Darnold, too. Throwing 19 touchdown passes that season, Glenn was on the receiving end of a career-high five of them.
"We didn't have an OTA to kind of work on our timing and so he didn't know much about me. Obviously, I knew all the talent that he possessed," Griffin said. "I remember his arm strength just kind of jumping off the scale when I saw him in person. The ball came out of his hand really nice and he had some zip on it. And so that got me excited.
"It kind of took a little bit of time early in the season, but we got rolling pretty quickly and I became someone he could rely on. Which is all I really wanted to do throughout my career, just be a piece of an offense that they could rely on to perform whatever the job called for. Whether it was blocking or catching passes or protecting Sam. Whatever it took."
Griffin shook hands with NFL history midway through his first season with the Jets when they traveled to Jacksonville for a game against the Jaguars. He became only the second tight end to score two touchdowns and a two-point conversion in the same game.
And even though New York lost, 29-15, Griffin was essentially as hot as the weather that afternoon.
"Because of my time with Houston, we would go to Jacksonville once a year," he said. "And I think a lot of teams come in there from other divisions and guys are surprised by the humidity factor and the heat.
"I remember warming up on the sidelines and the guys were talking about how hot it is. I was like, 'This is nothing compared to what my camps in Houston were.' And I was just going on about how I loved playing in this heat.
"I made a play early. Sam hit me underneath for an expected yardage gain of maybe six or seven yards, and I ended up breaking a tackle for a (24-yard) touchdown. And as the game went on, I think Sam was trying to actively search me out because he knew I was kind of feeling it. And so I backed up my talk and ended up having a really good game."
Besides catching some passes, making some blocks, and providing veteran leadership for the Jets, Griffin was a key contributor on special teams. In New York and throughout his career.
"Brant Boyer, he was instrumental in my years there. I learned a lot from him. He's one of the better coaches I've ever encountered in my career, and an even better person off the field," Griffin said.
"Special teams really unlocked playing time for me and kept me on some rosters maybe I didn't have, otherwise, a chance to make. So that was always going to be in the equation when I came to help a team out. That's how I got my start, and that's how I stayed around so long. I took pride in the special teams aspect, for sure."
Griffin spent three of his 10 seasons in the NFL with the Jets, finishing up with Chicago in 2022. What are among the fondest memories from his time with the Green & White?
"I came in as a free agent just before camp, almost as an afterthought," Griffin said. "The signing that Joe made with me probably didn't hit the bottom line on ESPN or probably didn't even make the website. But I think I lived up to that one-year contract and Joe felt comfortable enough to sign me to an extension while we were in the middle of the season.
"And for that to happen, just the way I had left Houston at that time, the future was a little murky. Coming to New York, and for me to play well and gel kind of instantly with Sam, I'm really proud that I made that happen and came through for Joe and Coach (Adam) Gase and Coach Boyer.
"That's always been my guiding light in terms of even the sport of football. I just loved to make my coaches proud. They trusted me and I wanted to reciprocate and come through for them when they're leaning on me. And when we won some games, it just felt good to be walking off of MetLife Stadium to some cheers."
Always appreciative of what his coaches did for him, when Griffin retired from the NFL, he returned to the area where he grew up, and is now paying it forward as a football coach himself. This fall will be his second season at Phillips Exeter Academy in Exeter, New Hampshire.
"I never connected with a professor or a teacher quite like I did a coach," Griffin said. "And so I wanted to give back to my community because when I was coming through the ranks, there weren't many players who had made it as far as I had. I felt like I could give kids in the area a special, unique perspective that otherwise they wouldn't have gotten.
"This is only my second year on the job, and so it's all new. I'm trying to get better every day with it, but instantly, just the feedback I've gotten from some of the kids and parents, has made it super rewarding.
"And it's been such a pleasure to work with a fine institution like Phillips Exeter Academy, as well. That has made it really easy for me. I have been through the boarding school process, so it's all about coming full circle and giving back to the community that served me."
Griffin is the special teams coordinator for Exeter, but he's also giving a hand with the position he played and one he's… Well, seen up close.
"I'm just trying to get in where I fit in. In my playing history, special teams was such a huge part of my career that I'm helping out in that area. And I'm helping out with the D-line, because that's all I've faced my whole career and I've made a lot of defensive linemen a lot of money throughout my career," Griffin laughed.
"And then offensively, I know a thing or two about running a route. So I just try to help how I can. Just general football, one-on-one knowledge that maybe they might not have heard before.
"With these high school kids, they don't know any better, and so you can really have a chance to mold their skill set and steal their mind, as well. That's really an untapped asset that they don't even realize that they have."
Living in New Hampshire's Seacoast region, Griffin and his wife, Elise, have a two-year-old son, James, and twin daughters: Hallie and Betsy, who are six-months-old.
"I'm doing something that I love outside of the house with coaching football and being around young kids and helping them out. And then when I come home, it's just awesome being all in on being a father and to be there for my wife," Griffin said.
"When I was playing, people would say, 'Do you love it?' And I was like, 'Yeah, it's a dream.' And now that I'm done playing, it's like the dream hasn't ended. I played a long career, and now I get to just be a dad full-time. It's been awesome, really fun."
