Liam Coen, Jaguars Finally Get Their Joint Practice Wishes Granted

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Bring on the joint practices.

A year ago, the Jacksonville Jaguars practiced against themselves for all but one singular afternoon against the Miami Dolphins. That is set to change in 2026, though, with Mike Kaye of The Chalotte Observer reporting the Jaguars will host the Carolina Panthers for joint practices in Week 2 of the preseason.

dave canale — Sep 7, 2025; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Liam Coen and Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales shake hands following the game at EverBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The Jaguars will also reportedly have joint practices with both the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the New Orleans Saints, giving them three joint practices in total -- one for each preseason opponent, according to the Florida Times-Union's Ryan O'Halloran.

For head coach Liam Coen, this grants the Jaguars a wish entering 2026 that they clearly would have liked to have gotten a year ago.

Joint Practice Success

Three joint practices against three different foes is quite the boost for Jacksonville compared to a year ago. The Jaguars had the singular practice with the Dolphins during the final week of the preseason, but they did not have similar arrangements for their other two foes. Coen made it clear in March at the league meetings that joint practices is something the Jaguars wanted added to the picture in 2026, and they got exactly that with these results.

“Yeah, look, I think there's some different ways that this is going right now. Last year we were in a first-year spot, so we didn't get a ton of juice and help on that front, so we ended up having one joint practice against Miami and that was it in [Preseason] Week 3," Coen said in Phoenix.

liam coen — Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Liam Coen answers questions during rookie minicamp at the Miller Electric Center, Saturday, May 9, 2026 in Jacksonville, Fla. Today was the second of a three day camp concluding Sunday. | Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

As a result of the lack of joint practices, the Jaguars played their starters throughout the preseason. Do not expect for this trend to continue in 2026 now that the Jaguars are set to get three different practices that can simulate those reps.

It was clear in March that this was not Coen's preferred method of getting ready for the season. Instead, it is clear the Jaguars' head coach would rather have his team participate in these practices and then let the depth players play in the preseason games.

"So, we chose to play our players in preseason games, which was against my inclination. It was against my belief," Coen said.

"Let's just put it that way. I just have a hard time putting a guy in a game that doesn't count technically towards the real season and real competition, I guess you could call it, and those games that really matter. At the end of the day, that's reality and I have a hard time putting somebody in a game for an exhibition like that.”

This, like many other aspects of what the Jaguars do in terms of their process, is similar to what the Los Angeles Rams do. In fact, part of the Rams' selling point to undrafted free agents each year is that they will get ample chances to find playing time and get film.

But now that the Jaguars are set to have joint practices against the Saints, Panthers, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers in that order, Coen will be able to handle the entire preseason process differently. Expect it not to look much like the 2025 process at all by the end of the day, which seems like good news for Coen and the Jaguars.

That is not to say it was a mess for the Jaguars a year ago, either. The Jaguars clearly got a lot out of the few preseason games they were in, such as a fourth-down call against the Pittsburgh Steelers that showed up early in the season with the exact same play. But the Jaguars have a way they want to do things, and it is clear that it will be easier to do that in 2026.

“My preference would be to do joint and not play them. But last year, we actually—it was good for us. We saw our players in some live situations that we hadn't been in yet, and it brought up some stuff that we needed to fix and address and we had to," Coen said in March.

"So, it was a great learning experience regardless, I think. There's a preference that I personally have and maybe others do but you’ve got to go with the flow. It's not something I'm going to be so adamant against and about that you're not fluid about coaching your team.”

The fact the Jaguars and Buccaneers will be practicing together is not a surprise at all, but it is also at least notable as well due to the way Coen's exit was received. All in all, this shows a happy resolution for all sides and a shift to a preferred direction for the Jaguars.

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