As Tom Pelissero said, in a dramatic turn of events, Liam Coen is in Jacksonville meeting with the Jaguars and “appears headed towards a deal.”
A dramatic turn: Liam Coen informed the #Jaguars on Wednesday he was staying in Tampa as OC on a new contract. But after the firing of GM Trent Baalke, the Jags reached out to see if Coen would reconsider. Now, Coen is in Jacksonville and appears to be headed towards a deal. pic.twitter.com/zvwTeNOlLX
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) January 23, 2025
Coen quickly became the front-runner for the Jaguars’ head coaching opening after Ben Johnson decided to go to Chicago.
However, on Wednesday morning, Coen withdrew his name from contention in order to stay with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as their offensive coordinator and for a pay raise that would make him among the highest-paid coordinators in football.
After missing out on Johnson, who reportedly was not a fan of the Jaguars’ “setup,” and then missing out on Coen, owner Shad Khan made the decision to move on from general manager Trent Baalke, who’s history with head coaches was likely a deterrent for the top candidates.
Now, not coincidentally, Coen’s interest in the job is reignited and, according to Adam Schefter, the Bucs have reached out to Coen to sign his new contract but the team has not been able to get ahold of him or his representatives.
As the Bucs’ play-caller in 2024, his first year at the helm of the Tampa Bay offense, the Buccaneers were the only offense in football to finish top-five in scoring, passing yards per game, and rushing yards per game.
