The Jacksonville Jaguars have been rumored to be planning big moves this coming offseason. On Wednesday, they made their first serious move by firing executive VP of football operations Tom Coughlin. Owner Shad Khan released a statement in which he said the plan had been to fire Coughlin at the end of the season, but he Khan decided to move it up.
Within the past hour I informed Tom Coughlin that he was being relieved of his duties as Executive Vice President of Football Operations of the Jacksonville Jaguars, effective this evening. I determined earlier this fall that making this move at the conclusion of the 2019 season would be in everyone’s best interests but, in recent days, I reconsidered and decided to make this change immediately. I thank Tom for his efforts, not only over the past three years but for all he did from our very first season, 25 years ago, to put the Jacksonville Jaguars on the map. General Manager Dave Caldwell and Head Coach Doug Marrone will each report directly to me on an interim basis. My expectations, and those of our fans, for our final two games and the 2020 season are high.
The early firing is not surprising in light of recent news that the Jaguars have dealt with more player grievances under Coughlin’s tenure than any other team. The NFLPA reported that 25 percent of all player grievances over the past two seasons have been filed against Jacksonville.
The union went so far as to tell players to consider this in determining their next stop in free agency. Considering Coughlin has been involved in much of this, it makes sense that he would get the axe.
The question now is how long general manager Dave Caldwell and head coach Doug Marrone last in their roles. Given how quickly the Jaguars have fallen in spite of some solid talent, there could be a complete rebuild put in place with Caldwell and Marrone both getting fired so a new head of football operations can decide who will handle personnel and coaching.