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Jacksonville Jaguars coordinator search: Who has the team requested, interviewed?
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- Jacksonville Jaguars coordinator search: Who has the team requested, interviewed?
Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Liam Coen isn't wasting time searching to fill out his coaching staff.
Coen made it clear this week that his focus at the start of the search is to get the defensive side of the ball before moving on to the offense. He's already made a move to fill the special teams cooridnator position, retaining Heath Farwell .
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"The fundamental focus right now is to hire the best staff we could possibly put together for these players. That is the No. 1 focus. [It] starts with the defensive coordinator position," Coen said Monday via 1010XL. "[I] feel really good about being able to move onto the offense after we've done some of the work on the defensive side of the football, first and foremost."
INTRODUCING: Jacksonville Jaguars' Liam Coen calls job opportunity of a lifetime, taking challenge head-on
Though Coen is focused on the defensive side of the football, he's also begun work on the offensive side, completing an interview with Los Angeles Rams offensive assistant/passing-game specialist Nate Scheelhaase for their offensive coordinator role.
Jaguars legend and Hall of Famer Tony Boselli also said this Monday morning ahead of Coen's introductory press conference. Boselli will have a permanent role in the Jaguars' front office in some capacity moving forward, owner Shad Khan confirmed Monday. The role has not been made clear at this time.
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As of Wednesday morning, Coen has already interviewed four candidates for defensive coordinator, including Green Bay Packers linebackers coach/defensive run-game coordinator Anthony Campanile, Los Angeles Rams defensive pass-game coordinator/assistant head coach Aubrey Pleasant , Las Vegas Raiders defensive cooridnator Patrick Graham and Minnesota Vikings defensive pass-game cooridnator/defensive backs coach Daronte Jones .
According to multiple reports, the team has also requested an interview with Carolina Panthers defensive passing game coordinator Jonathan Cooley.
Let's take a look at the potential hires.
Who is Los Angeles Rams offensive assistant Nate Scheelhaase?
Iowa State Cyclones offensive coordinator Nate Scheelhaase watches the team work out before an NCAA college football game against Oklahoma State Cowboys at Jack Trice Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, in Ames, Iowa.
The only coach Coen has officially interviewed for the team's offensive coordinator role thus far, Scheelhaase is a 10-year coaching veteran with nine seasons in college.
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Scheelhaase, 34, began his coaching career with Illinois in a football operations role in 2015. He continued at Illinois, moving up to running backs coach (2015) and offensive assistant (2016-17) before moving on to Iowa State as the team's running backs coach (2018), wide receivers coach (2019-2020), run game cooridnator/running backs and wide receivers coach (2021-22) and offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach (2024).
Scheelhaase leaped the NFL in 2024 with the Rams as an offensive assistant and passing game specialist.
Who is Green Pay Packers linebackers coach Anthony Campanile?
Green Bay Packers linebackers coach and defensive running game coordinator Anthony Campanile leads players through a drill on Wednesday, July 24, 2024, at Ray Nitschke Field in Green Bay, Wis. Tork Mason/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin
A candidate for defensive cooridnator, Campanile has coached for 19 years, including eight years at the collegiate level.
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Campanile, 42, began his collegiate coaching career at Rutgers as a defensive assistant (2012-13) and earned multiple promotions including to tight ends coach (2013-14) and wide receivers coach (2015) before he leaped back over to the defensive side of the football with Boston College as a defensive backs coach (2016-17) and co-defensive coordinator/defensive backs coach (2018).
Campanile moved on to Michigan as the team's linebackers coach in 2019 before moving on to the big leagues with the Miami Dolphins as a linebackers coach (2020-23) before moving to Green Bay in 2024 as the team's linebackers coach/running game coordinator.
Who is Las Vegas Raiders defensive coordinator Patrick Graham?
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - NOVEMBER 24: Defensive coordinator Patrick Graham of the Las Vegas Raiders walks on the field during warmups before a game against the Denver Broncos at Allegiant Stadium on November 24, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Broncos defeated the Raiders 29-19. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Another defensive candidate, Graham has an extensive coaching history in the NFL dating back to 2009 when he began as a coaching assistant with the New England Patriots .
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Graham didn't take long to move up the ranks, changing positions multiple times including to defensive assistant (2010), linebackers coach (2011), defensive line coach (2012-13) and back to linebackers coach (2014-15) before moving on from New England .
Graham, 46, continued his career with the New York Giants as the team's defensive line coach (2016) before moving on to the Green Bay Packers as a linebackers coach and run game coordinator (2018) before finally becoming a defensive coordinator with the Miami Dolphins in 2019.
Graham left his gig with the Dolphins to become the defensive coordinator under then-head coach Joe Judge for two years (2020-21). He became the Raiders' DC in 2022.
Who is Los Angeles Rams defensive pass-game coordinator Aubrey Pleasant?
Jan 5, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Los Angeles Rams assistant head coach Aubrey Pleasant warms up with players prior to the game against the Seattle Seahawks at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
Pleasant is a 15-year coaching veteran and joined the Rams staff as a cornerbacks coach in 2017.
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Pleasant began his coaching career after going undrafted out of Wisconsin in 2009. After a year at the high school level, Pleasant went to Michigan as a defensive graduate assistant in 2011 and was promoted to assistant defensive backs coach in 2012.
Pleasant made the jump to the NFL in 2013 as a coaching intern with the Cleveland Browns . Pleasant moved on to the Washington Commanders as an offensive assistant before transitioning to defensive quality control coach (2014-16).
Pleasant moved on to the Rams as a cornerbacks coach (2017-20), the Detroit Lions as a defensive backs and passing game coordinator (2021-22) and an offensive consultant with the Green Bay Packers (2022).
He came back to the Rams in 2023 under his current role.
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Who is Minnesota Vikings defensive backs coach Daronte Jones?
Jan 13, 2025; Glendale, AZ, USA; Minnesota Vikings defensive backs coach Daronte Jones against the Los Angeles Rams during an NFC wild card game at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
Jones, 46, grew up in Maryland and attended Temple and Morgan State University during his collegiate football career. Jones played at Temple for one season as a corner before transferring to Morgan State.
Jones was forced to end his playing career after his second season at the latter due to injuries that led to nerve damage.
Jones began his coaching career at Lenoir-Rhyne in 2001 as a graduate assistant before moving on to various colleges and high schools from 2002-04 before returning to the big state with Bowie State as an assistant head coach and defensive coordinator (2005-09).
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Jones jumped around again in 2010 as a graduate assistant at UCLA before moving to Canada to coach the Montreal Alouettes' defensive backs in 2011.
Jones bounced around to Hawaii (2012-14) and Wisconsin (2015) before finally leaping to the NFL as an assistant defensive backs coach with the Miami Dolphins (2016-17) and cornerbacks coach with the Cincinnati Bengals (2018-19) before joining the Vikings in 2020.
Who is Panthers defensive passing game coordinator Jonathan Cooley?
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA - JUNE 04: Defensive backs coach Jonathan Cooley of the Carolina Panthers speaks during a press conference at Carolina Panthers OTA Offseason Workout on June 04, 2024 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
Cooley began his coaching career at Millikin University as a defensive backs coach in 2011 and moved on to several colleges in the ensuing years, including two Bluffton University (safeties, 2012), John Carroll University (secondary, 2013-14), Kentucky (defensive graduate assistant, 2015-16), Tennessee-Chattanooga (defensive backs, 2017), Kent State (secondary, 2018) and Akron (defensive backs, 2019).
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After nine seasons at the collegiate level, Cooley got his first shot in the NFL with the Los Angeles Rams. He began as the team's defensive assistant/quality control coach (2020) before being promoted to assistant secondary coach (2021) and defensive backs coach (2022). Cooley moved on to the Panthers in 2023 and has worked as the defensive passing game cooridnator/secondary coach for two years.
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 article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jacksonville Jaguars' coach seeks coordinators: Who has the team interviewed?
