NFL Coach of The Year
Who had your vote?
The Jacksonville Jaguars closed the regular season with a statement. A 41–7 win over the Tennessee Titans sealed a 13–4 record, an AFC South title, and one of the most dramatic turnarounds in recent NFL history. That turnaround isn’t just impressive. It’s rare in NFL history. Yet despite this success, head coach Liam Coen has yet to receive widespread recognition, leaving the Jaguars head coach on the outside looking in.
Liam Coen Action Figure. Created by Staff via OpenAI
Coen inherited a team that finished 4–13 the season before his arrival. In one year, Jacksonville became a playoff team, a division champion, and a legitimate contender in the playoffs. That type of turnaround rarely happens in the NFL, especially in a coach’s first season. According to Jaguars senior reporter J.P. Shadrick, Coen became only the seventh coach in league history to win at least 13 games in his first year as a head coach.
Despite those results, national attention has shifted toward coaches in larger markets or teams with longer playoff histories. This has caused Coen’s impact to be overlooked, even though the numbers show a clear case for Coach of the Year. Shadrick argued that Coen’s run is historic, noting that no first-year head coach has ever taken a team with four or fewer wins and turned it into a 12-plus win team before.
What makes Coen’s season even more compelling as a Coach of the Year candidate isn’t just the wins. It’s how the Jaguars achieved them. In his first year as head coach, Coen reshaped the team’s identity, using an approach grounded in culture, resiliency, and accountability. Jaguars chief football strategy officer Tony Khan said the biggest impact Coen had was transforming the Jaguars’ culture from one weighed down by past struggles to one focused on winning and sustained growth.
All-Pro Reels from District of Columbia, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Beyond wins and losses, Coen reshaped the identity of the franchise. Jacksonville played with discipline, confidence, and consistency all season. Quarterback Trevor Lawrence delivered the best year of his career, breaking the franchise record for total touchdowns with 38, including 29 passing and nine rushing. Lawrence also emerged as an MVP and Comeback Player of the Year candidate, a reflection of both his growth and the system built around him.
The Jaguars did not rely on star power alone. They improved situational football, limited mistakes, and closed games with authority. Those changes point directly to coaching. Preparation, in-game adjustments, and player development were evident throughout the season, especially during key divisional matchups.
Shadrick added that if Coen is passed over for the award, it will only strengthen the team’s mindset. Jacksonville has embraced its role as a smaller market franchise playing with something to prove. Each moment of national doubt has fueled a deeper focus on postseason goals, where recognition matters far less than results.
Coach of the Year is meant to honor impact, change, and results. Liam Coen delivered all three. Turning a four-win team into a 13-win division champion in one season is rare. Doing it while redefining a franchise makes it even more meaningful.
Whether or not voters acknowledge it, the Jaguars already have their answer. Liam Coen changed the direction of the team, and seasons like this are exactly why the award exists.