With a humiliating 52-6 loss to the Detroit Lions, Doug Pederson most likely sealed his fate as the head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars. If owner Shad Khan chooses to move on from the head coach — signs point in that direction — the Jags might have gotten a firsthand look at Pederson's future replacement.
Days before the Lions game, insider Josina Anderson reported that Jaguars owner Shad Khan would like to wait for the offseason to make a decision on Pederson's future with the team but would pull the trigger if they got embarrassed against the Detroit Lions. And embarrassed they were.
Apart from a couple of drives that ended in field goals, the offense couldn't move the ball, let alone put points in the end zone. Mac Jones, filling in for Trevor Lawrence for the second straight game, went 17-of-29 for 138 yards with no touchdowns and one interception. To make matters worse, wide receiver Gabe Davis and center Mitch Morse left the contest with injuries.
The defense wasn't much better. In fact, they were dreadful. Coming off a strong showing against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 10, they put up no resistance against the Lions. The Jags were bullied at the line of scrimmage and went on to allow more than 600 total yards.
In fact, the Jaguars were so bad that the 475 yards they gave up on defense were the biggest yardage differential in an NFL game since 1979, via Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk.
The Lions out-gained the Jaguars by 475 yards today. That's the biggest yardage differential in an NFL game since 1979.
— Michael David Smith (@MichaelDavSmith) November 17, 2024
It's also worth noting that Anderson wasn't the only insider who talked about the Jaguars potentially making changes if the outcome was less than favorable. One day before the contest, Ian Rapoport of NFL Media broke the news that a dramatic shift could be coming after the Detroit game.
Rapoport stated that he wouldn't be surprised if Khan dismissed both Pederson and general manager Trent Baalke, which looks like a reasonable scenario in the aftermath. The silver lining of the historic humiliation is that the offensive coordinator who put up 52 on the Jags could be on the sidelines next year.
Why the Jaguars must make Ben Johnson a priority target to replace Doug Pederson
Ben Johnson will be a hot commodity in the next hiring cycle and teams will probably have to compete for his services in 2025. Earlier this year, he was a strong candidate to become the head coach of the Washington Commanders, but there were reports that his asking price got out of their range.
For the sake of the argument, let's say Johnson is willing to go to the team that makes the best bid for him, what's stopping the Jags from paying him a premium? With the Charleston Native leading the way, the Lions have assembled one of the most exciting offenses in the whole league. Moreover, he's developed playmakers such as wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown and tight end Sam LaPorta. If that wasn't enough, he's played a big role in Jared Goff's career revival.
Before Goff was traded to Detroit, it looked like he had already peaked with the Los Angeles Rams. However, the first overall pick in the 2016 draft is currently one of the top quarterbacks in the NFL. Imagine what Johnson could do for Trevor Lawrence, who's equally, if not more talented, than Goff?
When you take into account that Lawrence should be one of their top priorities in their search for a head coach, Ben Johnson is a no-brainer for the Jaguars. In Week 11, they witnessed just how good of a coach he is, why wouldn't they want that for themselves?