Report: Jaguars Could Retain HC Doug Marrone and General Manager Dave Caldwell

NFL Network is reporting that Jacksonville's changes may have ended.

After an eventful week in Jacksonville which saw executive vice president of football operations Tom Coughlin fired on Wednesday, many are still waiting for the smoke to clear to determine what is next for the team.

Jacksonville (5-9) firing Coughlin during the season has surprised some, but it was a widely-held belief that Coughlin would not return in 2020 one way or another, something owner Shad Khan confirmed in a statement Wednesday. But it has also long been presumed that, at minimum, Jacksonville would also replace head coach Doug Marrone and potentially general manager Dave Caldwell also.

But there appears to be some momentum for the remnants of the Jaguars' leadership core to return next season, according to a report from Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.

"While nothing firm has been decided, sources say there is a good chance that general manager David Caldwell and head coach Doug Marrone return for 2020," Rapoport said. "Khan has shown patience in the past and this is believed to be his preferred outcome."

Khan has shown a preference for continuity in the past, such as giving former head coach Gus Bradley nearly four seasons to establish himself despite never having more than 5 wins in a season. Khan also opted to not shake too much up after Jacksonville's disappointing 5-11 season last year, keeping Coughlin, Caldwell, and Marrone all in their roles.

Coughlin was fired in large part due to divides he created between players and Jaguars' management. The NFL Players Association came down hard on Jacksonville only two days before Coughlin's firing for circumventing league labor rules when fining players, and Coughlin's strained relationship with players also let to the team trading cornerback Jalen Ramsey to the Los Angeles Rams in October.

During Coughlin's strict reign, Marrone established himself as a positive figure in Jacksonville's locker room. A few of his players endorsed him keeping his job this week and according to Rapoport, it could be a reality if Jacksonville plays well to finish 2019.

"The move toward continuity, which would be made easier with a solid showing the next two weeks, underscores the influence Coughlin had on that building. Marrone had to put out countless fires from players grumbling or worse about Coughlin's fine system, sources say. It was a constant focus," Rapoport said.

What Jacksonville chooses to do about filling Coughlin's role in the front office is another move that needs to be sorted out. Jacksonville didn't have an executive vice president of football operations before 2017 and created the position specifically for Coughlin. Jacksonville could go back to its old structure of simply having a general manager and head coach working in tandem, but it could also look to add someone new to the front office while keeping Caldwell and Marrone.

"One internal option is Tony Khan, the son of the owner who serves as vice chairman and director of football operations for Fulham Football Club," Rapoport said.

One way or another, Jacksonville has major decisions to make. As we wrote earlier this week, it wouldn't be a surprise if either Caldwell or Marrone return based off the argument that Coughlin prevented them from doing their jobs. We are unlikely to have concrete answers for a few weeks, but the time will come sooner than later.