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Jacksonville Jaguars firing Trent Baalke underscores coaching search failures
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- Jacksonville Jaguars firing Trent Baalke underscores coaching search failures
The Jacksonville Jaguars ' search for a head coach has entered into a self-inflicted state of turmoil.
After passing on the opportunity to part ways with general manager Trent Baalke the day after the team's season finale against the Indianapolis Colts , Jaguars owner Shad Khan dramatically about-faced Wednesday afternoon, firing the long-time GM with Ethan Waugh inserted as interim.
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Khan said via a statement that he and Baalke "arrived at the conclusion that it is in our mutual best interests to respectfully separate, effective immediately."
GENE FRENETTE: Shad Khan looks bad for waiting to fire Trent Baalke
Before Baalke was let go, the Jaguars were reportedly scheduled to interview Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Liam Coen, but he reportedly withdrew his name from Jacksonville's search, opting to return to Tampa with a pay raise instead.
Coen is the latest miss among the team's prospective choices for head coach. The results thus far have been marred with criticism and confusion, notably because it appears everyone but Khan saw it coming.
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Jaguars, Shad Khan viewed as misguided after Baalke fumble
Jaguars General Manager Trent Baalke and owner Shad Khan look on during day 2 of training camp in 2022.
Khan wasn't necessarily caught off guard by the potential apprehension of Jacksonville as a landing spot for up-and-coming coaches.
It only took minutes after Pederson, not Baalke, was fired for reports to surface from national media pundits and reporters to identify a major flaw in Khan's decision.
Fox Sports NFL Insider Jordan Schultz released a slew of statements on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, from "NFL people" who are in "pure shock" that Jacksonville opted to keep Baalke.
Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer also fired a warning shot , noting: "If keeping Trent Baalke is not negotiable for coaching candidates with Khan, that will really limit the pool the Jaguars are looking at."
The warning shots go back beyond this cycle.
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In 2022 , during Baalke-Khan's second coaching search, reports surfaced indicating candidates potentially being trepidatious about taking the gig. That search ended in confusion amongst observers as candidates flew off the board, seemingly forcing Jacksonville to circle back to Pederson, the first coach they interviewed.
During his end-of-season press conference, Khan fielded at least 11 questions that specifically pertained to the team's decision to keep Baalke in the front office.
Still, when asked if he's worried about having a full pool of coaching candidates if they aren't aligned with Baalke's timeline, Khan said "No, not at all."
"I think we have a very compelling case on what we can offer the head coach and you know that. I think the players, where we stand on our draft, our salary cap, the city, the bricks and mortar, the facility and our division," he said.
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The Jaguars boast a state-of-the-art practice facility, play a weak division and have a renovated stadium set to get underway soon, but the crux of the issue appeared lost to Khan throughout the press conference.
The Jaguars owner defended his decision to keep Baalke, saying he did not want to "throw the baby out with the bathwater."
"We have a lot of things that are working, that can always be improved and will improve, and there are other things that are not working that need to be fixed. So, the coaching, that is an area that we need to fix now," said Khan. "But certainly, over the last few years, we built a football administration and a lot of things are working well there."
After being asked several times about Baalke's job security, Khan relented, saying that if a coach has a legitimate way to get better then he would put anything on the table. Still, Khan said he doesn't want anything to happen because of ego.
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"My response would be how would you improve it and then if it is credible, you want to do it. How does the structure work? I want to make sure that this isn't about ego or power or something more sinister quite frankly," said Khan.
"There have been some of those elements that I have found in my experience in the NFL. If it's a legit effort to get better, then everything should be on the table."
According to reports from The Athletic , Jacksonville's shot at hiring former Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson hinged on the team doing just what Khan suggested.
But he, at the time, passed on the opportunity.
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"The Jacksonville Jaguars were also interested in Ben Johnson but I'm told the setup wasn't in line with what he was looking for in his first head coaching job," said Dianna Russini .
"If the Jaguars wanted a serious shot at Johnson, they'd have had to move on from (or indicate a willingness to move on from) GM Trent Baalke. They made their choice," Michael Silver added.
Jacksonville Jaguars fire Trent Baalke: Here are 3 candidates to replace him
Johnson was hired by the Chicago Bears Monday morning.
And now, they're onto the next. But, at what cost?
What's next? Jaguars miss out on multiple coach candidates, can they convince anyone to join?
Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady looks on before a game against the Tennessee Titans in October.
The Jaguars have already missed out on multiple candidates.
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They brought in 10 coaches for virtual interviews and three of the top candidates are already off the board.
In addition to Johnson, the team was also interested in New York Jets defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn, but he was hired by the New York Jets instead.
While Coen looks poised to head back to Tampa, there has been no official word from the Buccaneers or Coen that that's the case and perhaps Baalke's firing will give the young offensive guru a reason to pick up Khan's call rather than letting a call to potentially join one of the most exclusive groups in the world go to voicemail — again.
NFL Media's Ian Rapoport said Wednesday soon after the announcement on Baalke's status came down the pipeline that Baalke's reputation around the league was "not positive," adding that Coen's decision to remain in Tampa likely triggered the general manager's firing.
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Still, Rapoport noted that multiple candidates could now become legitimate players in the team's race to find a head coach with Baalke out the door.
"Some of the top candidates... might be much more willing to go talk to Jacksonville again [now] they do not have Trent Baalke in place," Rapoport said.
The Jaguars are scheduled to meet with Las Vegas Raiders defensive coordinator Patrick Graham on Thursday and former New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh on Friday.
The team could also circle back to other candidates that aren't eligible to schedule second interviews yet such as Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady and Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator Kellen Moore. Both candidates are coaching in this week's conference championship round of the playoffs.
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Demetrius Harvey is the Jacksonville Jaguars reporter for the Florida Times-Union. You can follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @Demetrius82 or on Bluesky @ Demetrius .
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(This story was updated to add new information.)
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jaguars coaching search: Firing Trent Baalke better late than never?
