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The Jacksonville Jaguars did not wait long to make a move on Black Monday.
With the regular season wrapped up on Sunday, the Jaguars fired head coach Doug Pederson on Monday. A Super Bowl winner with the Philadelphia Eagles, Pederson spent the past 3 seasons in Jacksonville.
I had the difficult task this morning of informing Doug Pederson of my intention to hire a new head coach to lead the Jacksonville Jaguars,” owner Shad Khan said in a released statement. Doug is an accomplished football man who will undoubtedly enjoy another chapter in his impressive NFL career, and I will be rooting for Doug and his wife Jeannie when that occasion arrives. As much as Doug and I both wish his experience here in Jacksonville would have ended better, I have an obligation first and foremost to serve the best interests of our team and especially our fans, who faithfully support our team and are overdue to be rewarded. In that spirit, the time to summon new leadership is now.”
“I strongly believe it is possible next season to restore the winning environment we had here not long ago. I will collaborate with General Manager Trent Baalke and others, within and close to our organization, to hire a leader who shares my ambition and is ready to seize the extraordinary opportunity we will offer in Jacksonville.
Jacksonville turned to Pederson to right the ship after the disastrous 2021 season in which Urban Meyer posted a 2-11 record before being fired.
Pederson’s tenure started off well. He led the Jaguars to their first playoff win in 4 years. In the Wild Card round, Jacksonville defeated the Los Angeles Chargers in a thrilling 31-30 comeback win. However, the Jaguars fell to the Kansas City Chiefs in the Divisional round, ending the 2022 campaign.
In 2023, Year 2 under Pederson, the Jaguars achieved a 9-8 record, but did not make the playoffs. Jacksonville invested in its roster with long-term deals for Trevor Lawrence, Josh Allen-Hines and Tyson Campbell, but the squad only managed a 4-13 record in 2024.
This past season, Jacksonville did not pick up back-to-back wins at any point. The team started 0-4 and was 2-9 at its bye week. The Jaguars lost 4 of the last 6 to end the season, including a 26-23 road overtime loss to the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday.
Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaigns of Fred Taylor and Andruw Jones.
