This is a season of firsts for the Jacksonville Jaguars.
It’s the first time in more than a decade that the team has had a complete top-to-bottom refresh, ushering in new faces at head coach, general manager and a new-to-the-role face as the team’s Executive Vice President of Football Personnel.
While Jaguars general manager James Gladstone and EVP Tony Boselli will be able to relax a bit Sunday — at least physically — Liam Coen’s responsibility on Sunday will come with a bit more attention. It’ll be his first time taking the field when it counts, presenting him with plenty of unknowns.
Still, Coen understands the moment ought to be something he takes in, at least a bit more than he did during the preseason. It’s something he realized when talking to a friend from California earlier this week.
“He was just saying, ‘you got to take a moment to take that in,'” Coen said, referencing his friend’s advice for when he takes the field Sunday against the Carolina Panthers.
“I definitely didn’t do that for the first three preseason games. I do have to take it in and I think it’s a cool moment for me personally and professionally but also to do it with the guys that I’m able to do it with here in the building, Tony [Boselli], James [Gladstone].”
Coen added that everyone in the building has been supportive, something he appreciates, but understands there’s a greater goal with everything.
“To try to give the community and the fanbase a product that they’re proud of, I think that’s kind of what weighs on you a little bit, is you’re excited to see your players go out and play, you’re curious to see the responses to adversity and the challenges within the game but you’re eager to try to put a product on the field that people are proud of,” Coen added.
Still, beyond giving the fans something to cheer for, Coen must figure out what it takes to be a head coach. The ins and outs of game management aren’t something you learn in the classroom or from observing from afar. No, it’s something you must learn on the job; it takes time and experience.
Liam Coen excited to enter the unknown with Jaguars
Multiple phases of the game must be unknown ahead of the regular season.
Teams aren’t permitted to have as heavy a workload as they had in the past. Teams must be careful with how much physicality they put into any given practice, especially ahead of training camp. The players who will suit up in Week 1 will likely have three or four series of preseason football under their belt.
One of the greater unknowns for all teams, but one that Coen singled out when asked, is the team’s rushing attack. That correlates directly with the amount of work the team is — and isn’t — able to do from a physicality perspective ahead of time.
“You’re always curious how you’ll be able to run the football physically against another opponent because you’ve gone against your own team and you get used to that,” said Coen.
“So, you get an evaluation only kind of based on yourselves in a few small samples in the preseason, like running the ball for four quarters effectively, staying with it, grinding it out when you got to get north of 30 carries maybe to go win the game and you’re unsure of what that looks like.”
Coen said you’d have confidence and belief in what the team can do, but you’re not completely sure what it may look like. He added that making plays on the perimeter of the field is also a factor.
“Like, that’s something that you hope will show up. When a 50-50 ball opportunity comes or, the ball is in the air, are we coming down with it, or are they making a play on it? I think that’s something that you’re eager to go see as well,” he said.
Coen was able to challenge a play during the preseason. He also gambled on a long field goal at the end of the half, signaled timeouts at appropriate times and made tough decisions to go for it on fourth downs.
Still, he needs to get the intricacies of all of that down. On Friday, Coen will hold a “situational masters” meeting with the players and on Saturday, Coen, senior director of football strategy Jon Dykema and passing game coordinator Shane Waldron will have a new-to-Coen game management meeting.
“I haven’t had to make those decisions in a game when it comes to the timeouts, the two-point conversions, the fourth downs, and all that. So, that’s a little unknown, but you’re trying to get reps of it throughout the week and then and as well on Saturday,” said Coen.
Dykema did the same thing with the Detroit Lions, where he spent 15 seasons. He was most recently Detroit’s director of football compliance and lead football counsel from 2022-24.
It’s the little things Coen must learn and quickly adapt to during his first year on the job. Will there be mistakes? Absolutely. But when it comes to preparation, it appears Coen has been led in the right direction.
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’ Liam Coen ready for ‘unknowns’ of being an NFL head coach
Reporting by Demetrius Harvey, Jacksonville Florida Times-Union / Florida Times-Union
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