There's nothing you can tell the Jacksonville Jaguars that will make them feel good after the crushing loss to the Buffalo Bills. Heck, a local reporter tried to give head coach Liam Coen a few words of encouragement after the game, and was received with pushback. But despite the way things ended for the Jags, there's no doubt that they had a magical 2025 season.
Aside from racking up 13 wins, the most they had since 1999, they also won the AFC South for the first time since 2022. Sure, it would've been great to see them advance to the divisional round of the playoffs, but there's no doubt that they accomplished big things. Coen himself acknowledged as much during his media availability session.
LIam Coen talked about this first season with the Jaguars
Following the Bills loss, Liam Coen met with the local media and said that he was grateful for the opportunity to be a head coach, pointing out that it was a huge learning experience.
"Yeah, I mean. Was an honor," Coen told reporters (3:46 mark). "It's an honor to be the head coach of this football team, this group of guys, the organization, people that I'm fortunate enough to work with on a day-to-day basis, has been extremely gratifying to be in this role, obviously."
Coen continued, "And you learn so much in your first year doing it, and be able to self-scout and self-evaluate it in the offseason, to give yourself a chance to win these type of games in the future, but putting ourselves in a position to compete like champions every day and see what that looks like next season."
Later in the exchange, Liam Coen said that he made an effort to raise the standards, noting that he did his best to see players thrive on and off the field.
"I hope that we've established a standard of competing at a high level of mental and physical toughness, of putting the team first, and that we're going to make every decision as an organization that puts the team and the grass first, because that's what matters," Coen said.
"That's what it's all about, trying to put your players in a position to be successful, both on the field and in the building, as much as possible. The details matter, and continuing to try to set those new standards and keep moving forward."
Before joining the Jags, Coen was the offensive coordinator for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2024. Prior to his stint with the Bucs, he had stops at Kentucky and the Los Angeles Rams.
Related: 3 Jags players who cooked, 3 who got burnt in the loss to the Bills
The Jaguars should be even better in Year 2 of the Liam Coen era
As impressive as the Jaguars were in Liam Coen's first season at the helm, imagine how much better they'll be now that he has a year of experience under his belt.
Looking back, the Jags took a risk on Coen because he hadn't been a head coach at the NFL level, but the bet paid off right off the bat. They were one of the hottest teams to end 2025 and should have no trouble picking up where they left off next season. Sure, Year 2 will come with its own set of challenges and hurdles.
The Jaguars will need to find a way to keep key pending free agents, such as linebacker Devin Lloyd, and address the larger scale roster. Similarly, Jacksonville will no longer fly under the radar, as opposing teams now know what to expect. But expect Liam Coen and the Jaguars to rise to the occasion.
The 2025 season was just the beginning of more great things to come.