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Jaguars GM Trent Baalke talks narratives, season collapse, Ryan Nielsen and more
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- Jaguars GM Trent Baalke talks narratives, season collapse, Ryan Nielsen and more
Jacksonville Jaguars general manager Trent Baalke doesn't see a power struggle brewing.
During his 30-minute press conference with the local media Thursday, Baalke denied any rumors of in-fighting within the organization, sticking to his guns regarding the collaboration between himself and head coach Doug Pederson, while also pointing to systematic issues regarding some aspects of the football team.
Jacksonville Jaguars general manager Trent Baalke talks with reporters on Thursday from the Miller Electric Center.
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In fact, Baalke feels even stronger about their relationship since they first began working with each other in 2022.
"When you go through tough times, you find out a lot about a lot of people," Baalke said. "The season didn't end the way we wanted it to, we had some strong conversations throughout the year [about] where things were at and where things were trending. Great communication, great collaboration and really respect him and everything that he does."
Directly responding to reports of a power struggle, Baalke didn't mince words, repeating multiple times throughout the press conference that the speculation from outside the building was false.
"A lot of what's written, a lot of the narratives out there are just false. Plan and simple, false narratives," he said.
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One of the few narratives Baalke addressed Thursday was in regards to the idea that he contemplated retirement , brought forth by CBS Sports senior writer Pete Prisco. Baalke laughed off the implication.
"I contemplate that on a daily basis," Baalke said jokingly. "But no, I'm going to be 60 years old. I'm far from retirement."
Due to the losses the team endured late in the season, Baalke also addressed whether he feels more pressure heading into the 2024 campaign considering recent criticism revolving around his team building and the team's overall collapse in 2023. He answered with an emphatic "no."
"That's not how I live, I don't live in regrets. I don't live worried about my job. If someone can do it better, step up. This is always a challenge; keeping a team together and building a team. It's not one person doing it. We have a lot of confidence in the process.
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"We had 21 of 22 starters coming back last year. To go into the draft, especially where we were picking and think you're going to come away with four immediate starters is not realistic. Does it happen on some teams? Yeah, but it usually doesn't happen on a team that made it to the divisional round of the playoffs."
'Coach owns the staff': Baalke denies any buzz about offensive staff changes
Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson talks with offensive coordinator Press Taylor on the field ahead of the start of Wednesday morning's training camp session. The Jacksonville Jaguars held their third day of training camp Wednesday, July 27, 2022, at the Episcopal School of Jacksonville Knight Campus practice fields on Atlantic Blvd.
One of the more grounded reports to surface recently regarding Baalke and the team's coaching staff came via Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer.
Breer responded to a fan email via his mailbag, indicating that there was at least some discussion about what direction the team's offense was headed, implying that Pederson and Baalke were at odds about at least some portion of that discussion centered around Press Taylor.
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"Richard, it's funny you ask because there was at least some buzz the past few weeks of the season that the Jacksonville Jaguars front office, led by Baalke, was looking hard at where the offense is under Taylor. And if you remember, Pederson's loyalty to his coaches is what, in the end, wound up leading to his firing with the Philadelphia Eagles ," Breer wrote .
"Obviously, there will be staff changes on offense, and now they're looking for a new defensive coordinator. But it's certainly worth paying attention to where this goes next because the Jags have a lot invested in Trevor Lawrence . And if he doesn't break through in his fourth year, it's fair to think bigger-picture questions are asked."
When asked about the comments, Baalke did not deny any discussions about that part of the team's offense but did say that Pederson owns the coaching staff and that he supports him.
"Again, Coach [Pederson] and I, and ownership, we talk throughout the year and we've talked about everything. Those discussions will remain private, but at the end of the day, like I said, Coach owns the coaching staff. He's held responsible for that coaching staff. I can tell you this, I have supported every decision that he makes, one hundred percent," said Baalke.
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"We have discussions, we get through with the discussions, whether it's the draft, free agency, coaches, personnel staff, support staff, we go through the process and we talk about everything. At the end of the day, once a decision is made, we make it and we move on. I'm one hundred percent behind anything Coach decides because I've been factored into it. I've been a part of those discussions."
Baalke's implication was simple, Pederson is in control of who is hired, who is fired and whatever else happens with his coaching staff. So, while Baalke's words mean something to Pederson and the rest of the building, he implies that he isn't a dictator.
Baalke sat in on defensive coordinator interviews, collaborated with Pederson to land Nielsen
While there were minimal coaching changes to the offensive side of the football, Pederson fired the majority of his defensive coaching staff, including defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell .
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In just a couple of weeks, Pederson landed on former Atlanta Falcons DC Ryan Nielsen , who is currently working to put together his staff of assistants in conjunction with Pederson.
Despite rumors circulating on the internet, Baalke remained steadfast in what he indicated before about Pederson's staff being his, and ultimately his decision regarding who he wants on his staff. The Jaguars' GM sat in on the team's defensive coordinator interviews, which is not unusual around the league, and typically it is the coach that invites the GM to listen in.
"Coach owns the staff, just like they do in most places and no different here," said Baalke when asked about his influence on the Nielsen hiring. "I respect the decisions that he makes. We collaborate, we work together. I sat in on all the interviews, we shared our thoughts. But at the end of the day, Coach owns it. I respect those decisions."
Baalke spoke highly of Nielsen, who he says was enjoying a Disney vacation with his family when the Jaguars called to get him up to Jacksonville for an interview.
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"The thing that's neat is the preparation that Ryan had put into getting ready for the interview, knowing our roster the way he did, talking through how he sees those pieces being utilized in his defense," said Baalke.
"That was impressive ... So, just his presence, his command within the room, the synergy he had with the group that was there, his attention to detail, the two-way relationships that he's been able to establish, and really the fact that no matter who you talk to they had nothing but positive things to say about him. Then you bring him in and everything you heard comes to life."
'Who are we?': Baalke uses pointed language in evaluation of 2023 campaign
Jacksonville Jaguars defensive tackle Raymond Vohasek (59) fist bumps general manager Trent Baalke Monday, Aug. 14, 2023 at Miller Electric Center at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. Today was the 14th training camp session.
Baalke used the term "vision" eight times throughout his press conference, specifically as it pertained to the team's ability to execute that vision. He also was direct in how he spoke about the team's identity, or lack thereof this year.
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"I think if I look at it from a big picture, create an identity. Who are we? Offensively, defensively, special teams, I felt we did that towards the end of last year, I'm not so sure we got to that point this year," said Baalke. "That's No. 1, you've got to have an identity. Who are you?"
Part of that identity falls on the players, some on the coaches and some on the person that brings them in. When asked directly if he's brought in enough "blue-chip" players throughout his drafts, Baalke said that he feels like the team has some pretty good players, but that the vision for those players has to be realized.
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"Coach and I have talked a lot about this year's class in particular. The onboarding process of them, getting them up to speed, trusting them. You're in a developmental league now. You don't have time to say that we can shelf them for a year or shelf them for two years. You got to get them up to speed quick," Baalke said, emphasizing again that collaboration is done throughout the process.
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"When you look at bringing in a player and the vision you have for them, at the end of the day, you got to ask yourself, 'Did we execute that vision or didn't week?' I think if you ask Coach and certainly you're asking me right now, we've got to do a better job of that vision and executing it."
Last year, the Jaguars selected 13 players in the draft, signing another slew in undrafted free agency. Of those, eight rookies played snaps throughout the year with tackle Anton Harrison leading the pack with 1,113 offensive snaps played (95.45%).
Among the four other offensive rookies (tight end Brenton Strange , receiver Parker Washington , running back Tank Bigsby and WR Elijah Cooks ), they played a collective 795 snaps with Strange playing the most at 307 offensive snaps (26.44%).
Defensively, no Jaguars rookie played more than safety Antonio Johnson (171 defensive snaps, 15.38%). Defenisve lienman Tyler Lacy played 145 snaps (13.04%), while outside linebacker Yasir Abdullah played 45 snaps (4.05%).
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Linebacker Ventrell Miller , offensive lineman Cooper Hodges and CB Christian Braswell all spent all or most of the season on IR, unable to play.
"We've got to do a better job with the vision, a better job with the onboarding process, a better job of getting these young players up to speed quicker. It is a developmental league and it's got to happen quickly," Baalke repeated.
Demetrius Harvey is the Jacksonville Jaguars reporter for the Florida Times-Union. You can follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @Demetrius82 .
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This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jaguars GM Trent Baalke talks Ryan Nielsen, Press Taylor
