With no NFL games this weekend—the Pro Bowl games don’t count—now is a good time to review the recent coaching hires of a few teams.
There was a weird triangle of drama between Liam Coen, the Jacksonville Jaguars and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Regrettable decisions were made, but Coen likely has no regrets about taking the Jaguars’ head coaching job.
The New York Jets have plenty of reasons to be confident about the hiring of Aaron Glenn, the former Lions defensive coordinator with an impressive résumé as a coach and player.
Let’s get to this week’s fact or fiction.
Liam Coen made the right decision taking Jaguars’ HC job
Manzano’s view: Fact
Let’s be clear: Coen handled his exit from the Buccaneers poorly, and the Jaguars embarrassed themselves by doing whatever it took to hire Coen, making a mockery of the Rooney Rule.
It was messier than a reality TV dating show, but in the end, Coen made the right decision taking the Jaguars’ head coaching job. He couldn’t pass on an opportunity that rarely comes around again for a candidate who has never been an NFL head coach.
Ben Johnson took risks by passing on head coaching opportunities in multiple hiring cycles. It worked out for him after becoming the Chicago Bears’ head coach this month. But most coaches aren’t as fortunate and many are quickly forgotten, especially if their respective team endures a losing season.
Bobby Slowik was recently fired as the Houston Texans’ offensive coordinator, a year after being the hotshot coordinator with plenty of head coaching interviews lined up for helping C.J. Stroud produce a sensational rookie year.
Todd Monken can’t even get a serious look from teams and he has operated one of the best offenses in the league the past two seasons as Lamar Jackson’s offensive play-caller. Joe Brady is still waiting after many assumed he would get a head coaching position a year or two after helping Joe Burrow win the Heisman Trophy at LSU in 2019.
Coen took his golden opportunity—one that came with a promising quarterback in Trevor Lawrence. It’s tough to fault him for that, but again, he could have handled it better. Coen should have kept reminding himself not to pass on his opportunity before telling the Jaguars that he was pulling his name from consideration. Maybe it was a leverage play to get more, which happens all the time when it comes to job openings.
But there are various sides to this messy story, and judging from reports, the Buccaneers aren’t happy with how this played out. Coen put himself and his family first after doing everything he could to help Tampa Bay win games in 2024. All sides will be fine with time.
Jets got it right with the hire of Aaron Glenn
Manzano’s view: Fact
It’s always hard to predict how a new coach will fare with a new team. And it’s rarely a good idea to judge a coach based on an introductory news conference. Dan Campbell was quickly ruled a meathead for saying his players will bite off knee camps in his introductory press conference. Nick Sirianni was labeled inept for being nervous at his first presser.
Now there are hundreds of “0–17” comments under social media videos of Coen because he had an awkward “Duuuval” shout when he met the Jacksonville media for the first time.
But I’ll break the No. 1 rule for how not to assess a new head coach. It was wise of Glenn to share his old stories from his Jets playing days. Talking about the 1998 AFC championship game was a nice touch to remind Jets fans how far he took them when he was a feisty defensive back for Bill Parcells.
The Jets have gotten it so wrong since those Parcells days. Maybe it’s not such a bad idea to bring back someone who knows how to win while sporting the team’s logo and colors. Glenn will likely hold his players, coaches and even team owner Woody Johnson accountable.
He won’t back down from what he believes in and seems to know what’s best for others judging from his successful stint with the Lions. It was impressive how he kept his unit battling this past season amid a wave of injuries to key players. He also had a hard path building the Lions’ defense into a stout unit.
Who knows how Glenn will do, but the Jets had the right idea to bring him back.
Titans should prioritize keeping the No. 1 pick
Manzano’s view: Fiction
It was smart of Tennessee Titans president of football operations Chad Brinker to let reporters know his team won’t pass on generational talent.
For starters, it lets other teams know they’re not just aiming to draft a quarterback with the No. 1 pick. Secondly, it lets others know that it’s going to take a serious offer to trade down from the No. 1 pick.
Initially, it seemed the 2025 draft wasn’t going to have generational talent because the quarterback prospects aren’t viewed as highly as last year’s group and it’s tough to gauge which position Travis Hunter is better suited for in the NFL. But now, there’s plenty of hype for Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carter.
Carter lining up on a defensive front with Jeffery Simmons, Harold Landry III and T’Vondre Sweat would certainly give Tennessee’s rebuild a major boost. But this team desperately needs a quarterback and has holes at various positions and the defensive front might be their only strength.
Perhaps there’s a team inside the top 10 that wants to take Carter or Hunter with the top pick in April’s draft. The New England Patriots and Jaguars are set at quarterback and both have top-five picks. The Titans need to keep all their options open.
Bills, Ravens won’t win a Super Bowl in next four years
Manzano’s view: Fiction
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes has reached a level of greatness that only Michael Jordan and a few other all-time greats are familiar with when it comes to preventing their top competitors from winning championships.
It’s fair to wonder whether Josh Allen or Jackson will ever win a Super Bowl because Mahomes and the Chiefs continue to get in their way. I won’t group Burrow in with them because he’s already beaten the Chiefs in the playoffs and has played in a Super Bowl.
But I’ll say Allen or Jackson will break through in the next four years, even though I didn’t have the Buffalo Bills or Baltimore Ravens for this MMQB exercise from last year. I’m not sure if both Jackson and Allen will eventually win it all because the Chiefs aren’t going away any time soon and there are always a few surprise teams ready to ascend.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as NFL Fact or Fiction: Liam Coen Made Right Decision Taking Jaguars’ Head Coach Job.
