Jacksonville Jaguars’ Shad Khan sending a message by keeping Gus Bradley

The Jacksonville Jaguars don’t want the stink of instability and impatience attached to them and are using their patience with Gus Bradley as a selling point.

The NFL has long liked Gus Bradley and the work he has supposedly been doing to rebuild the Jacksonville Jaguars. The product on the field hasn’t matched the work, but he’s still been well respected around the league.

Firing him midseason would taint that legacy (even with the abysmal win-loss record) and poison a lot of good will that owner Shad Khan has built up around the Jaguars in his first few years as owner. Instability like that of the Cleveland Browns sends out an odor that keeps top talent away both in the players ranks and in the coaching ranks.

Charley Casserly gave an interview suggesting this same thing. Making a change at this point in the season without a clear plan forward doesn’t suggest progress but suggest instability and a lack of order to the organization. Khan is better serving his future and the future of the team by keeping Bradley and showing his willingness to stay loyal and honor contracts through seasons. That will be appealing to future potential head coaches who want to change the culture and implement their own schemes, much like Bradley worked to do over his seasons with the Jags.

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At this point, even with the shift at offensive coordinator, it looks like Bradley’s time with the Jaguars will be done at the end of the season. He hasn’t shown enough to deserve to come back, even with one year left on his contract.

What Khan is doing now is sending up a beacon to the NFL head coaching recruits that he is willing to stick with them and willing to be patient and see what they can do. He’s showing loyalty and commitment and hoping a higher quality of coach is willing to come to Jacksonville and take him up on those values.

The Jags aren’t the Pittsburgh Steelers or Baltimore Ravens when it comes to having legendary coaches, but the move to keep a stable presence at head coach marks similar appeal to those who may consider the job in the future. The Jacksonville Jaguars aren’t going to devolve to the Browns or Oakland Raiders under Al Davis. They’re going to commit to their next head coach and that involves committing to the current one, no matter how bad things get.