Jaguars voice lays out compelling case for Liam Coen to win NFL Coach of the Year

The Jacksonville Jaguars ended the regular season with a bang, annihilating the Tennessee Titans with a statement 41-7 win. They finished the year with a 13-4 record and the AFC South title, and are now playoff-bound.

Sunday, the Jags will host the No. 6 seed Buffalo Bills at home, and it will be another huge opportunity for Jacksonville to not only continue on through the postseason but also prove that they are a legitimate contender and should be taken seriously.

Yet respect continues to be elusive, though head coach Liam Coen has used it as fuel for his team. One major example, though, is how overlooked Coen himself is in the Coach of the Year race. Sure, his name is mentioned, but typically as an afterthought, coming after other, flashier candidates... though one notable voice is speaking up for Coen with an argument that can't be ignored.

Liam Coen’s Jaguars turnaround is earning the kind of praise that wins awards

J.P. Shadrick, the senior reporter for the Jaguars, tweeted that Coen should be named Coach of the Year, and that quarterback Trevor Lawrence should be not only the league MVP, but the Comeback Player of the Year.

Yes, there are all of the factors working against them, but Shadrick comes with the cold, hard facts, which, really, should be all that matters. As Jags fans know, this is just a small market team (cough), but that doesn't make Coen's accomplishment any less notable.

But still, other coaches are favored to win over Coen, like Mike Vrabel, a mind-boggling choice. Yes, the New England Patriots are the No. 2 seed over Jacksonville's No. 3, but they also had one of the easiest schedules in the league. (Don't tell the Patriots that, though. They don't like living in reality.)

The actual reality is that Coen's coaching run is literally historic; he's the only first-year head coach to ever take a team with four or fewer wins and turn it into one with 12 or more wins. That's never been done before, ever, and then you have to consider everything else he's done this season.

Even JJ Watt has thrown his support behind Coen, noting that Coen constantly has the team working and growing, particularly after a loss or setback. "The thing I like the most about them is that they're consistently evaluating themselves and figuring out how to be most successful with the tools they have," he said. "They don't care what it looks like or how it gets done; they just want to find the best possible path to wins."

Of course, knowing Coen, if he gets snubbed, he'll just use it as more fuel for the Jaguars if they do end up making it to the Super Bowl. This small market team is playing with a giant chip on its shoulder, and every time they're disrespected, it just brings them one step closer to the only title that really matters: Super Bowl champions.