JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson addressed a slew of recent coaching moves on Tuesday, saying wide-ranging personnel decisions were difficult but “changes were necessary” to move the Jaguars forward.
Pederson fired defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell and seven coaches on that side of the ball Monday night. On Tuesday, the Jaguars got rid of running backs coach Bernie Parmalee and didn’t renew the contract of assistant offensive line coach Todd Washington.
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“Since our season’s end, I have made the difficult decision to relieve several members of the coaching staff — on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball — of their duties. I want to thank each of these coaches for their tireless efforts these last two seasons,” Pederson said in a statement. “Ultimately, I felt change was necessary to allow our football team to reach the goals for which we are capable.”
The rash of changes comes in wake of Jacksonville’s dubious finish. It started the month of December with an 8-3 mark and battling for the No. 1 seed in the AFC. It ended on a 1-5 swoon, including a 28-20 loss to a 5-11 Tennessee team to miss the playoffs.
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The Jaguars gave up a season-high in rushing yards to Derrick Henry (19 carries, 153 yards, TD) in that game. Jacksonville gave up 24.3 points per game during its 1-5 slide, a total that ranked No. 26 in the league. The only win in that stretch was a 26-0 rout of the woeful Panthers.
With the exception of Parmalee, the offensive staff has remained relatively intact, much to the dismay of fans. During a News4JAX poll on Monday, offensive coordinator Press Taylor was the main person who fans put the blame on for the collapse. Taylor drew 29% of the vote from more than 5,700 fans.
Quarterback Trevor Lawrence was next at 21%. Lawrence has to be better, especially in the turnover area. Through his first three seasons, Lawrence has accounted for 69 touchdowns (59 passing, 11 rushing) and 60 turnovers (39 interceptions, 21 fumbles). Those are similar totals to ex-Jacksonville quarterback Blake Bortles during his first three seasons in town (74 total touchdowns, 63 total turnovers). That’s not exactly a ringing endorsement of Lawrence as a generational quarterback.
Pederson and the offensive braintrust need to drill down on the reason for Lawrence’s regression in 2023. Was it due to a below-average offensive line (allowed Lawrence to be sacked 35 times in 16 games) or something systemically?
For those hoping to see a change in the offensive system, don’t expect that to come in moving on from Taylor.
Pederson has strong belief in Taylor, who coached with him in Philadelphia. It was that relationship that ultimately cost Pederson his job with the Eagles. Pederson was set on promoting Taylor from passing game coordinator/quarterbacks coach to offensive coordinator. Philadelphia owner Jeffrey Lurie reportedly wanted a more experienced OC to help revive one of the league’s worst offenses. He fired Pederson on Jan. 11, 2021.