JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jaguars capped one of the wildest weeks in franchise history by officially hiring Liam Coen as their next head coach on Friday.
The team is hopeful that the 39-year-old can bring the franchise out of its perpetual swoon and maximize the potential of quarterback Trevor Lawrence.
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Jaguars owner Shad Khan released a statement through the team’s X page.
A statement from Jaguars Owner Shad Khan. pic.twitter.com/Ifqrx7z3MY
— Jacksonville Jaguars (@Jaguars) January 24, 2025
Coen released his first statement as the head coach that reads in part:
Becoming the head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars is an opportunity of a lifetime, and one that I am going to run with to instill a championship culture and winning tradition here in Duval. This doesn’t happen without the support and opportunities that my family and I have been afforded throughout my career, especially during this past season in Tampa Bay. We thank Todd Bowles for his continued support and the entire Buccaneers organization for the experience, and know they will have success ahead. “Most of all, we are grateful to Shad Khan for his belief in what we will bring to the Jaguars. We will work tirelessly to reward his confidence. As head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars, I will hire a first-class coaching staff, establish a distinctive and effective brand of football on both sides of the ball, and our players will live for the black and teal. Shad and Jaguars fans should expect nothing less, and that’s what we plan to deliver and more. My wife Ashley and our family are honored to be here and a part of the Jacksonville community. We are ready to get to work.
Liam Coen
Getting Coen back to the negotiating table was the exclamation point of an unbelievable two-day span that saw the team initially lose out on him Wednesday, pivot and fire their beleaguered general manager, and restart conversations with the Buccaneers offensive coordinator.
It ended with Jacksonville, desperate for any bit of good news after a miserable 4-13 season, winding up with a young head coach it aggressively pursued.
Coen left Tampa Bay at the altar, something that’s certain to be brought up in the coming days.
Unlike previous head coaching hires made under owner Shad Khan, Coen doesn’t come with baggage (Urban Meyer) or with a Super Bowl ring (Doug Pederson).
He also comes with questions about his staying power in jobs (nowhere more than three years) and lack of NFL experience (five years). The upside is that Coen has an offensive background that should appeal to Lawrence, who said he preferred a young, offensive-minded head coach.
Coen is coming off an impressive first season as the Bucs offensive coordinator. He guided Tampa Bay to the NFL’s third-ranked offense, averaging nearly 400 yards per game, and the fourth-highest scoring attack -- with 29.5 points per game.
His high-powered offense helped the Bucs claim their fourth consecutive NFC South title. Their postseason ended with a wild-card loss to the Washington Commanders.
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Coen’s candidacy appeared over early Wednesday because of the Jaguars’ decision to retain general manager Trent Baalke. Instead of firing Baalke along with Pederson on Jan. 6, Khan held on to the embattled GM, and felt that his presence wouldn’t impede Jacksonville’s position.
Jacksonville went through 10 interviews and then scheduled three in-person interviews this week with Coen, Robert Saleh and Patrick Graham. Wednesday morning, Coen abruptly pulled out of the Jaguars head coaching pool, reportedly due to the presence of Baalke. He agreed in principle to a new deal with Tampa Bay
That led Khan to abruptly part ways with Baalke on Wednesday afternoon, opening the door for a new line of communication with Coen and his representatives. ESPN’s Adam Schefter and other media outlets said Coen had no contact with the Buccaneers after reportedly agreeing to a contract extension with Tampa Bay, instead of coming to Jacksonville. But Coen never signed that deal, which was contingent on him not going on that second, in-person interview with the Jaguars, according to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer.
The embarrassment of Coen pulling out of consideration forced Khan to act on getting rid of Baalke, which he did Wednesday afternoon. That helped reignite dialogue with Coen, who, according to Breer, slipped up to Jacksonville in secrecy to interview in person. Breer reported that Tampa Bay tried without success to get Coen to return calls and messages, and he did so sparingly. Late Thursday night, Coen got in touch with the Buccaneers to tell them he was accepting the Jaguars job.
According to NFL on CBS reporter Jonathan Jones, Pro Football Hall of Famer Tony Boselli assisted in Jacksonville’s head coaching search. Boselli has had an interest in a front office role with the team that drafted him in 1995 for some time, but this is believed to be the first time he’s had a hand in any type of operations decision.
In Jacksonville, Coen will be tasked with trying to help elevate a perpetually struggling franchise into one of respectability.
Lifelong fans say they have faith he can get the job done.
“If he comes in and gets that line together. See we have always had a defense; we have always had a great running back. We always had running backs that had to maneuver or learn how to run straight through the line. Give him some coverage, give him someone who can block. Get them out there 5 or 10 extra yards -- we should get a first down each and every time,” fan Eric Brooks said.
The Jaguars reached two AFC championship games under original owner Wayne Weaver and went to the 2017 AFC title game under Khan. But his tenure as owner includes the league’s worst record (64-148 in the regular season) since 2012.
Khan’s first hires were Dave Caldwell as general manager and Gus Bradley as head coach. Bradley went 14-48 and Caldwell was the architect of some of the worst rosters in franchise history.
He promoted Doug Marrone to head coach full-time in 2017, and Marrone went 10-6 and won the division in his first year. That was the high-water mark. Marrone never won more than six games in any of his three seasons after that, including a franchise-worst 1-15 mark in 2020.
The Meyer debacle lasted 13 games before his midnight firing. Pederson was a stabilizer who managed a pair of 9-8 seasons before this year’s 4-13 implosion. His insistence on sticking with offensive coordinator Press Taylor and the hiring of defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen sealed Pederson’s fate.
Coen checks the boxes of having helped rehab a quarterback like Baker Mayfield, who, like Lawrence, was the No. 1 overall pick. Mayfield had success in Cleveland before he was jettisoned by the franchise after it traded for Deshaun Watson.
Mayfield bounced around the league before settling in with Tampa Bay. He had a record year in 2024, including a career-best 41 touchdown passes.
It’s a crucial hire for Lawrence. He’ll be working in his third offensive system in five NFL seasons and now has a $275 million contract hanging over his head. That deal looked premature, especially with how Lawrence has played from Week 13 of the 2023 season.
Lawrence missed eight games last year with shoulder and concussion issues before going on injured reserve.
Coen was a four-year starter at quarterback for Massachusetts and remains the best signal-caller in program history. He played one year in the Arena Football League with the Alabama Vipers before embarking on his coaching career.
Most of Coen’s coaching experience has come at the college level. He had two stints as the offensive coordinator at the University of Kentucky (2021, 2023), crafting two of the highest-scoring seasons in school history.
He was the OC at the University of Maine in 2016-17. Coen also had stops at Brown, UMass and Rhode Island.
In the NFL, he was the OC for the Rams under Sean McVay in 2022. He was the assistant receivers coach and assistant quarterbacks coach from 2018-2020 with the Rams.
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