How Jacksonville’s Head Coach Can Take Their Offense to a New Level
After getting hired as the Jacksonville Jaguars' head coach in January, Liam Coen has taken the initiative to transform this offense that was one of the worst in 2024. As the offensive coordinator with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Coen took a struggling quarterback who was trying to find his footing in Baker Mayfield and turned him into one of the best quarterbacks in the league. With the Jaguars, Coen has Trevor Lawrence, who has gone through numerous head coaches and offensive coordinators throughout his NFL career. The constant turnover rate in Jacksonville has caused Lawrence to find issues with consistency in his play, with many fans believing that he has yet to hit his full potential that was seen during his college days at Clemson. One of the key factors in Coen taking the Jaguars coaching gig was that he would be able to turn around Lawrence and create chemistry that would change the trajectory of this Jacksonville squad.
In Tampa Bay, Coen had the Buccaneers as the fourth-ranked offense in points scored. The offense was electric with Mayfield connecting with weapons like Mike Evans and a dominant run game in Bucky Irving. Coen wants to recreate a dominant run game in Jacksonville, drafting two running backs and having an explosive performance out of Travis Etienne Jr. in Week One. Coen also had Tampa Bay as the third-ranked in total yardage, something he emphasized as he entered Jacksonville. The Jaguars struggled to get any offensive momentum under Doug Pederson and offensive coordinator Press Taylor, with many fans calling for his firing early in the year.
Coen now has more control in Jacksonville than he did in Tampa Bay, as he recruited his own offensive coordinator in Grant Udinski. Udinski is credited with the turnaround of another quarterback in 2024 with Sam Darnold, as he was the offensive coordinator for the Minnesota Vikings. With two masterminds of turning around quarterbacks that were rejected by the majority of the NFL, it is undeniable that Trevor Lawrence can take the next step this season. Although not the offensive coordinator, Coen will have a major influence on this Jacksonville offense throughout the season. This has already been shown, with Jacksonville’s explosive rushing attack in Week One and almost 400 total yards as an offensive unit.
