Just recently, Liam Coen made headlines for stating that the Jacksonville Jaguars don't get the spotlight nearly as much as Caleb Williams. He was by no means taking a shot at the Chicago Bears quarterback but rather pointing out that the Jags are flying under the radar even after going 13-4 and winning the AFC South last year.
That said, Coen's remarks about Williams got so much attention that another more meaningful comment he made in the same conversation was lost in the shuffle.
Liam Coen and the Jaguars are playing for respect from the NFL
Liam Coen had a sitdown on 1010 XL and stated that the Jaguars are striving for sustained success, noting that consistency is the ultimate metric to measure a team.
"I think learning from people is like, what is the truest measure of performance? I think it's consistency," Coen said (3:14 mark). "Like, yeah, great years, awesome, yeah. And what we're judged on, how we're respected in this league by our peers, by whomever. The people, the community, the fan base. That's consistency, and not just a consistent coach or consistent player, but consistent teams with different players leaving and coming, like that's our job."
Coen continued, "We got to become the best version of ourselves with who we have, and we can't pay everybody. Unfortunately, love to. Then it's like, are we a consistent organization? Is our messaging consistent? Are we respected as a consistent organization in the NFL? That's the goal. That's what we're trying to do here. Is like, yeah, I mean, there's a million people probably out there saying like, yeah, we'll wait and see."
This isn't the first time Coen has talked about building consistency. In fact, he's discussed it at length at different points of the offseason, arguing that Jacksonville isn't playing for wins next season, but rather for respect, and understandably so.
Dating back to 2000, the Jags have made the playoffs just four times, and none in back-to-back years. Coen, along with general manager James Glaldstone and Tony Boselli, is looking to buck the trend.
Liam Coen has put the Jaguars in a position to build sustained sucess
Circling back to Liam Coen's comments, winning in the NFL and doing it year in and year out isn't easy. That's why the turnover of head coaches is so high. Doug Pederson experienced first hand. The Philadelphia Eagles ousted him just three years after winning the Super Bowl in 2017. Later with the Jaguars, he made the playoffs and posted back-to-back winning years. Nevertheless, it wasn't enough to keep his job after 2024.
Coen could suffer the same fate if the winning stops. He's aware of that harsh reality, so he's set his sights on the greater picture. The Jags have done a good job of building a strong foundation the past two years instead of going for short-term solutions. That means letting players walk in free agency, because as the head coach stated, you can't pay everyone. But by the time these players leave, you already have their replacements ready to roll because you focused on finding a fresh batch of players and developing them.
When you add it all up, the Jaguars are putting in the work to enjoy long-term success, win games, and subsequently earn the widespread respect the Jaguars have been craving.
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