When Jacksonville Free Press reporter Lynn Jones-Turpin was handed the microphone during Jaguars coach Liam Coen’s post-game news conference on Sunday, she didn’t ask a question.
Instead, she offered words of encouragement to the first-year head coach who led a four-win team to a 13-win season that ended in a heartbreaking playoff loss to the Buffalo Bills on Sunday.
Below is their exchange:
Reporter: I just want to tell you congratulations on your success, young man.
Coach: Thank you.
Reporter: You hold your head up, all right? You guys have had a most magnificent season.
Coach: Thank you.
Reporter: You did a great job out there today.
Coach: I appreciate it.
Reporter: So you just hold your head up, OK?
Coach: Thank you, ma’am.
Reporter: And ladies and gentlemen, Duval, you the one.
Well-known ESPN reporter Adam Schefter shared a clip of the exchange on X, saying, “This is an awesome post-game exchange between a reporter and Jaguars HC Liam Coen.”
This is an awesome post-game exchange between a reporter and Jaguars HC Liam Coen: pic.twitter.com/FwE8aRFaaR
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 11, 2026
But sports reporters, including Jacksonville-based Associated Press reporter Mark Long, countered Schefter’s take on the now-viral moment.
Long wrote: “Nothing “awesome” about fans/fake media doing stuff like that. It should be embarrassing for the people who credentialed her and her organization, and it’s a waste of time for those of us actually working."
Others have expressed similar feelings, saying that while Jones-Turpin’s comments were kind, the setting was not appropriate for them.
One ESPN NFL reporter wrote: “Look, it’s a kind sentiment, but it’s not the job of a reporter to console a coach in a postgame press conference. Pressers are to ask questions to gain a better understanding of what happened or figure out what’s next — and do it in a limited amount of time."
Many have come to Jones-Turpin’s defense online, particularly to the accusation that her comments were not professional.
Bernice King, daughter of civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr., spoke out on Jones-Turpin’s behalf, sharing an Instagram post that read: We need more of what Lynn Jones from Jacksonville Free Press did in that Jaguars post game press conference yesterday. Humanity + compassion don’t = unprofessional. If so, the world could certainly use more ”unprofessionalism" right now. Thank you, Ms Jones."
On the sports side, Jones-Turpin was adamantly defended by former pro football player and sports personality Pat McAfee, who hosts a popular show on ESPN.
McAfee took to Instagram on Monday, saying he’s happy to see the “curmudgeon bums” of sports journalism “getting absolutely buried” by fans for attacking Jones-Turpin.
“I’m happy the world is starting to see what they truly are,” he wrote in a lengthy post, adding that Jones-Turpin’s comments gave a glimpse into how well Coen “handles compliments during one of his most miserable moments.”
Jones-Turpin told News4JAX on Monday that she almost didn’t go to the press conference, but she was sharing her thoughts about the season with someone as they exited the game, and he encouraged her to attend.
WATCH: Our full interview with Jones-Turpin is below
She said she sensed, as he was answering questions during the press conference, that Coach Coen was “totally immersed” in his emotions, and that’s where her encouraging words came from.
“The words just came out,” Jones-Turpin said. “And I think he was very appreciative of those words.”
Many feel she spoke for much of the fan base, who also expressed after the game that, despite the loss, it had been an overwhelmingly positive season, and they look forward to the future of the franchise with hope.
As for accusations about being “fake media,” Jones-Turpin said she doesn’t take offense because she knows her own history, adding that she’s been in the business for more than 30 years and has interviewed the likes of former President Barack Obama and sports icons Terry Bradshaw and Tiger Woods.
“So he can call me fake all you want to, honey. I’ve been doing this for a long time. People know me,” Jones-Turpin said, explaining that she’s a member of The Black Press and the National Newspaper Association and that the Jacksonville Free Press, where she is an associate editor, is one of more than 230 African American newspapers still printing in the U.S.
She was also part of the inaugural Jaguars season as a scouting administrative assistant on Tom Coughlin’s staff and worked under long-time veteran NFL scouts Rick Reiprish and Ron Hill.
Jones-Turpin said she’s seen other people go viral, and now that it’s happening to her, she’s just enjoying the moment.
To those who question her credibility, she had a simple response:
“Go Jags!”