Jaguars OC Press Taylor doesn't mind giving up playcalling duty in 2024

The Jacksonville Jaguars offense regressed in 2023. This has led head coach Doug Pederson to consider taking away playcalling duty from offensive coordinator Press Taylor. Even though Pederson hasn't made up his mind yet, Taylor is ready to give it up if that's what it takes to win.

Taylor met with the local media in the second week of Organized Team Activities. He was asked if it mattered who called plays. He said no, that "winning is what matters to us." Here's the clip via 1010 XL.

Pederson got flak after 2023 for standing up for Taylor despite the fact that he delivered mixed results as the playcaller. At the time, the head coach pointed out that it was Taylor's first time as a playcaller full-time but overall did a good job. Later in the offseason, Pederson said he wasn't opposed to calling the shots partly because having defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen in the fold allowed him to focus on the other side of the ball.

Early in OTAs, Pederson was asked if he would be indeed taking playcalling duty away from Taylor. He said that he has plenty of time to make a decision, but based on Taylor's latest comments, there's a strong chance he will.

The Jaguars are better off with Doug Pederson calling offensive plays

One of head coach Doug Pederson's biggest strengths is calling plays. However, he's done his best to groom Press Taylor dating back to his days with the Philadelphia Eagles. An offensive assistant, Taylor was promoted to quarterbacks coach under Pederson's watch. Following the 2020 season, Pederson wanted to promote Taylor to offensive coordinator but owner Jeffrey Lurie pushed against it, which led him to resign.

Pederson at last got his wish when he became the head coach of the Jaguars. He made Taylor his offensive coordinator and handed him playcalling duty in 2023. So far, the results have been mixed. He certainly deserves praise for crafting game plans against tough opponents but one of his biggest criticisms is his ability to make in-game and general adjustments. For example, the offense suffered a steep decline when Zay Jones missed time with a PCL injury.

Similarly, Taylor steered away from the running game as the year progressed. In his defense, the offensive line couldn't block but he should've found a way to mask the unit's deficiencies and coach around them. He didn't, and the Jaguars went on to win only one of their last six games to 2023.

Again, the offense collapse didn't solely fall on Taylor's shoulders. Trevor Lawrence was hurt in the second half of the season and the Jags' offensive depth was less than ideal. Having said that, Jacksonville is better off with Pederson calling plays.

With Ryan Nielsen overseeing the defense, Pederson will be able to focus on the finer points of the offense. The formula has worked in the past, there's no reason to deviate from it. As the saying goes, if it's not broken, don't fix it, or in the Jaguars' case, Pederson must take over playcalling duty again since it wasn't broken.

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