Finally, here is something that all fans of the Jacksonville Jaguars can agree on. Liam Coen is off to a polarizing start to his stint in Duval because of a decision he made in the Week 2 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.
Adam Patrick is a writer for NFL Spin Zone. Following the loss to the Cincy, he penned an article this week called "3 NFL heroes (and 2 villains) who turned Week 2 into unforgettable madness," in which he characterizes Liam Coen's decision to go for it on fourth and five near the end of the game against the Bengals as a move that makes him a "villain."
Really?
When asked about the decision in the postgame press conference, Coen cited analytics and said it was a "one hundred percent go."
It's perfectly fine to disagree with the decision. There are a lot of fans and media who are on record saying they wouldn't have gone for it, opting instead to take the field goal. That's a reasonable take. Both Dan Hicken and Jeff Prosser on 1010XL's morning show, The Drill, thought he should have kicked.
"I saw the analytic for their situation... it's 83% go for it, 78% kick the field goal. That's not a big enough difference to affect your decision... Here's an analytic, when you score 30 or more points, you have a 67% chance of winning. A field goal right there gives you 30. Why not use that analytic?"Jeff Prosser
Calling Jaguars HC Liam Coen a villian is excessive
But to call Coen a villain for being, perhaps, too aggressive, and then doubling down on it in his press conference, is silly.
First of all, there's no clear way to know whether kicking the field goal would have mattered. Maybe a six-point lead affects the mindset of both teams in a way that favors the Jags beyond just the points. That's not crazy. But to act like it definitely would have is dumb. It's also at least as likely, if not more so, that the course of events unfolds exactly as it did and the Jags lose by one.
Secondly, so far, Liam Coen is far more hero than villain. He has delivered the running game and offensive line play that was promised. The defense is vastly improved, and the passing game is in a bit of a "we'll see" stage at the moment, but certainly not because of play designs.
Jaguars sideline reporter and NFL analyst Bucky Brooks thinks Coen is performing well for the Jags, as he pointed out on 1010XL's The Frangie Show:
"I know fans don't really know Liam Coen that well. But, Imma tell you, man, he's made of the right stuff - the way he handled the team immediately after the game, the way he handled the press conference today, he kind of talked about the storm that was going to come and how you handle that. Look, I think this team is in a much better position than it's been in the past. I think we'll bounce back."Bucky Brooks
No one is saying things are going precisely according to plan in Jacksonville. If they were, the Jags would be 2-0 and everyone would be smiling. There are plenty of issues on the team, most having nothing to do with any shortcomings Coen may have as a coach.
And here's some really good news for Jaguars fans: Coen only has two games under his belt as a head coach in the National Football League. If anything, he will get better from here; maybe a lot better, and it ain't that bad to start with!
So, folks can relax on the "villain" talk. Coen is going to be aggressive on fourth down. That's clear, and while some fans may prefer to kick more often, that certainly doesn't make Coen a villain. At this point, with drastic improvements in both offense and defense under his watch, Coen is trending far more as a hero than a villain.