Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair forearmed Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence on Dec. 1, 2024, ending Lawrence's season. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
Published on January 5, 2025 at 5:14 pm
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After concluding the season with a 26-23 overtime loss to the Colts in Indianapolis on Sunday, the Jaguars finished the most disappointing season in franchise history with a record of 4-13.
Never before has the team entered a season with more hope and ended it so calamitously. The closest contenders for the most disappointing season in Jaguars history would include the 2000 season, following a trip to the AFC Championship game, and the 2018 season, after the Jaguars were a missed call away from their first Super Bowl appearance.
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In 2000, injuries were the culprit. In the years following, the salary cap derailed any Super Bowl hopes under Tom Coughlin. In 2018, it was infighting fueled by prima donna players who splintered the locker room and led to a partial players’ revolt.
Both seasons were disappointing but nothing like this season, which owner Shad Khan had proclaimed had the best roster assembled in Jaguars’ history.
So what comes next?
Khan has been incommunicado publicly regarding any offseason decisions with the coaching staff or front office moves.
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There are rumors and suppositions that Khan will move on from Doug Pederson. ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter said on Sunday before the game that he expects Pederson to be fired. There is also a thought that Khan will also have to move on from general manager Trent Baalke if the Jaguars want to land a top coaching candidate.
It’s the right thing to do. Pederson guided the Jaguars to back-to-back winning seasons, but the way last season ended, with the Jaguars losing five of the last six games, and the way this season played out eliminated any goodwill created in 2022, when the Jaguars got hot at the end of the season, won the division and a playoff game.
The Jaguars have some attractive advantages that will make Pederson’s a good job if it is open: Jacksonville will have a high draft pick in the first round, No. 5, and three extra picks in the draft from past trades. Offensive-minded coaches will also embrace a chance to work with quarterback Trevor Lawrence. There is no state income tax. Khan has proved to be largely a “hands-off” owner who is willing to spend money to improve the team. It doesn’t snow here. What’s not to like?
In the NFL, they call the day after the end of the regular season Black Monday. It’s when the majority of coaching and general manager firings take place.
The Chicago Bears, New Orleans Saints, and New York Jets fired coaches during the season. If the Jaguars are going to get in line for some of the top coaching candidates, they must do so soon.
Cole Pepper has covered sports in Jacksonville since 1996, most recently for News4Jax. He is currently broadcast director for Sporting Club Jacksonville and has called play-by-play for a number of teams, including the Suns, Tomcats, Jacksonville University, Sharks and The Bolles School football. He also served as the studio host for the Jaguars Radio Network.
