Aaron Glenn turns down Patriots interview in NFL head coaching shocker

Several NFL teams are in on the Aaron Glenn sweepstakes this offseason.

The Patriots will not be one of them.

New England requested an interview with the Lions defensive coordinator for their open head coach job, but he rejected the sitdown, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero first reported Thursday.

This comes after the Boston Sports Journal reported earlier in the day that the request for a Glenn interview was viewed as a “cover your ass” move by the Patriots in NFL circles.

Glenn, one of the top candidates available in the coaching cycle, has interviews scheduled for the Jets, Saints, Raiders, Bears and Jaguars.

His current boss, Lions head coach Dan Campbell, spoke glowingly about him earlier this week and believed he should get his own head coaching gig.

“Aaron Glenn is — he’s as good a coach as you’re going to find, he’s an even better human being,” Campbell said Tuesday. “Look, if nobody wants him, I’ll take him again. I can tell you that right now. The thought of going through another cycle and he’s not somebody’s head coach is ridiculous.”

Glenn was a three-time Pro Bowler as a defensive back, spending seven years in the league with the Jets.

He’s now in his fourth season as the Lions’ defensive coordinator, with the team ranking seventh in the NFL in points allowed per game (20.1) and fifth in rushing yards allowed per contest (94.4).

The Patriots did announce Thursday afternoon that they completed their interview with Mike Vrabel after they’d already met with Byron Leftwich and Pep Hamilton — the latter two raising eyebrows as potential Rooney Rule satisfiers to allow the franchise to fast track a hiring.

While they will miss out on one Lions assistant, they are scheduled to meet with Detroit offensive coordinator Ben Johnson on Saturday.