Former Jacksonville Jaguars QB Mark Brunell joins Lions coaching staff

Former NFL quarterback Mark Brunell, one of the most notable players in Jacksonville Jaguars history is ready to give coaching a shot at the pro level. However, it won’t be with the ‘Jags’.

The Detroit Lions have announced Brunell will join their coaching staff as their quarterback’s coach. Originally a fifth-round selection for the Green Bay Packers in 1993, the California native was traded to the Jaguars in 1995. He led Jacksonville to a couple of AFC Championship appearances and earned three Pro Bowl nods during his nine-year tenure with the team.

Brunell wouldn’t enjoy the same level of success later in his NFL career but won a Super Bowl ring as a backup with the New Orleans Saints in 2009. Once the quarterback hung up the cleats, he gave coaching a shot and became an assistant coach at Providence School in Florida in 2012. The following year, he became the head coach at Episcopal School, a position he held up until 2020.

It would’ve been nice to see Brunell join the Jacksonville Jaguars again.

Back when the Jaguars had a head-coaching opening earlier this offseason, many names were officially linked to the job before they settled on Urban Meyer. Even though Jaguars former players such as Brunell and Tony Boselli weren’t part of the process, it was natural to wonder if they could come back to the team in a front-office role or as part of the new coaching staff.

This wouldn’t be unheard of as Keenan McCardell, who played in Jacksonville from 1996 to 2001, was the team’s wide receiver coach from 2017 until 2020. It would’ve made sense for Brunell to advance his coaching career with the Jaguars, but the interest wasn’t there, so the former quarterback saw an opportunity in Detroit and he took it.

In the end, the Jaguars have a vision under new head coach Urban Meyer, and Brunell may not have fit in it. That doesn’t mean he won’t have to prove his worth. He will, it just won’t be in Jacksonville.