When new head coaches take over, they tend to clean house. Not Liam Coen, though. While he'll be dismissing some of the staff the previous regime brought in, he's also retaining one key coach who's been with the Jacksonville Jaguars since 2022.
Following Coen's introductory press conference, Gene Frenette of The Florida Union-Times reported that Farwell is signing a one-year deal to stay with the Jags in 2025.
BREAKING: #Jaguars special teams coach Heath Farwell signed contract extension today and will return in 2025. Future for assistant ST Luke Thompson still up in air.
— Eugene Frenette (@GeneFrenette) January 27, 2025
This isn't surprising news when you take into account that Coen had high praise for the special teams during the press conference. Following his introduction, he had a sitdown with Frank Frangie of 1010 XL and said that keeping Farwell around was one of his priorities.
"The fundamental focus right now is to go hire the best staff that we can possibly put together for these players. That is the number one focus starts with the defensive coordinator position," Coen told Frangie when he was asked what's next after his introduction. "[I] feel really good about being able to move on to the offense after we've done some of the work on the defensive side of the football."
Coen continued, "First and foremost, obviously, want to try to get the special teams taken care of. I think I've got a ton of respect for Heath and what he did love to be able to try to get that one locked in and get him back here. Man, that's if that's a fundamental piece, that I would love to be able to get that done. Okay, we're really in a good spot with him."
On the other hand, John Shipley of Sports Illustrated says that Jacksonville will be moving on from offensive coordinator Press Taylor, defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen, and offensive line coach Phil Rauscher.
The news that Nielsen is leaving doesn't come as a surprise. The organization has already interviewed Daronte Jones and Patrick Graham for their defensive coordinator post. Similarly, Taylor didn't seem to have a favorable chance of returning when head coach Doug Pederson was dismissed. The same is true for Rauscher, who didn't have much success coaching the offensive linemen the past two years.
Coen is an offensive-minded coach. Even if Taylor or Rauscher had fared better, he might've still brought in his own guys to ensure he can run his scheme the way he wants. Below is Coen's full exchange with Coen. He expands on some of the things he talked about during his presser.
Re-signing Heath Farwell was a no-brainer for the Jaguars and Liam Coen
The special teams were one of the Jaguars' bright spots since Heath Farwell's arrival, so it doesn't come as a shock that Liam Coen wanted to retain him. In fact, B&T predicted that whoever became the head coach would be smart to keep him around.
Return specialist Jamal Agnew made the Pro Bowl as an alternate in Farwell's first season at the helm. Cam Little went 27-of-29 in his rookie season, while Daniel Thomas has developed into one of the best gunners in the league. Of course, he also helped long snapper Ross Matiscik and punter Logan Cooke earn Pro Bowl designations and earn First-Team All-Pro honors in 2024.
The bottom line is that there is no need to fix what is not broken, and the Jaguars and Liam Coen made the right call when they chose to retain Heath Farwell.