The Jacksonville Jaguars don't always get the spotlight because they are from a small market. It doesn't help that they struggled to win games on a yearly basis, but they've been getting more attention in light of their hot streak in the second half of the 2025 season.
Heading into the game against the Denver Broncos, head coach Sean Payton brought up the fact that Jacksonville played in a small market in a clumsy attempt to praise his opponent. However, those comments came back to haunt him in the Jags' 34-20 win.
Liam Coen is thrilled the small-market Jaguars came through vs. the Broncos
Liam Coen caught wind of Sean Payton's "praise" of the Jaguars. He didn't appear to be enthused. Not one bit. Following the win over the Broncos, the first-year head coach clapped back at his Broncos counterpart, noting that he was thankful a small-market team could come to Empower Stadium and leave with a win. Here's the skinny.
"Yeah, great team effort," Coen said. "Just thankful that a small market team like us can come into a place like Mile High and get it done."
"A small market team like us can come into Mile High and get it done."#JAXvsDEN pic.twitter.com/2V2i8UiKrO
— Jacksonville Jaguars (@Jaguars) December 22, 2025
Later in his exchange, Coen stated that he was pleased with his team's effort, pointing out that they all did their part.
"Very impressed, very impressed with the way these guys have continued to compete. Trevor [Lawrence], the offensive line had to shuffle a few things. I thought they protected really well. Did some really good things in the past game. Parker Washington stepped up in a huge way. All those guys, I think he threw it to about seven different receivers in the game, whatever it was, and guys just keep battling and making plays," Coen said.
For the eighth game in a row, Jacksonville scored 25 points or more. Similarly, the defense stymied a Broncos defense that ranked 11th in points scored before the game.
Related: Jarrian Jones comes full circle in the Jags' win vs. the Broncos
Liam Coen has turned the Jaguars into a legitimate playoff contender
Some analysts put an asterisk next to some of the Jaguars' recent wins because they came against underwhelming opponents. However, skeptics can no longer doubt Jacksonville after trouncing Denver, arguably their best team in the second half of their schedule.
Having defeated the No. 1 in the AFC, the Jags deserve all the recognition they can get. Sure, they lost games to the Seattle Seahawks and the Los Angeles Rams at the midpoint of the season. But at that time, they were still figuring things out. Since then, the Jags have gone on to win seven of their last eight games.
Moreover, the Jags put an end to Denver's 11-game winning streak, and Liam Coen deserves plenty of credit for steering the ship in the right direction after finishing 4-13 last year.
Circling back to Sean Payton's comments, the Jaguars just proved that it doesn't matter that they're from a small market; they'll come for you, and will do it on your home turf.