Jaguars' Coen, Gladstone Prove to Be Perfect Match

Last year was the most critical offseason in the Jacksonville Jaguars' franchise history. They needed to find individuals who could help establish a culture built on evolution, accountability, and other factors that could contribute to team success. Something needed to change to turn the franchise around from a laughingstock to a respected organization.

Those individuals were Jaguars head coach Liam Coen and general manager James Gladstone, who took time after owner Shad Khan waited to part ways with his then-GM, Trent Baalke. A younger tandem at two of the most critical positions in the organization was about to lead the Jaguars into a new era, filled with unknowns, yet some combination of hopefulness and optimism.

One year later, as the next chapter of the regime is set to begin, the Jaguars may have found their match for years to come after a successful 2025 campaign that has the team keen on new heights in a potentially perfect match between Gladstone and Coen.

The Jaguars may have the perfect match

Coen Jags — Jacksonville Jaguars Executive Vice President of Football Operations Tony Boselli, left and Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Liam Coen watch warm up before an NFL football AFC Wild Card playoff matchup, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Jacksonville, Fla. Bills lead 10-7 at the half over the Jaguars. [Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union] | Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Gladstone walked into the Miller Electric Center this time last year with some within the building not knowing who their new general manager was or where he came from. He was a quiet, yet seemingly popular candidate for the role, having spent several years with Les Snead in Los Angeles.

During his and Coen's end-of-season joint press conference, Gladstone noted how there is a longer runway for success that's given to both personnel. There is significantly more patience toward the two, even following a terrific 13-win season, while hosting a playoff game in one of the best years for the organization this century.

"As I thing about what myself, Liam, Tony [Boselli] were able to do with a vision, being able to execute that, raising the floor of the football team, knowing that when you think back to 2024 there was plenty of talent to keep, close games, but we needed to raise the floor and inject intangibles into the football team so that we could close games," Gladstone said.

"To be able to see that come to fruition is something that we can certainly take some pride in and being able to talk through and engineer what this football team looks like moving forward and where our points of emphasis need to be is certainly something we're having those early discussions around and need to continue to dive deeper into what that actually looks like. Looking forward through that, seeing proof of concept as a version of fulfillment, knowing that our whole message and really what was so great is Liam's message was absorbed by our players."

Gladstone Jags — The Jacksonville Jaguars’ first-round pick, Colorado Buffaloes wide receiver and defensive back Travis Hunter, left, answers questions as General Manager James Gladstone, right, sits next to him during a press conference Friday, March 25, 2025 at Miller Electric Center in Jacksonville, Fla. [Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union] | Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Coen presented an idea of "1-0" each week, how each is a new week and a chance to learn, grow, and improve as a team. The next-play mentality worked like a charm, especially for the player would benefit the most from Coen's hiring, quarterback Trevor Lawrence, who starred in a career season in his fifth season, seemingly finding a way to success and establishing his place among the best.

"I was extremely proud of a lot of things that we were able to accomplish, very proud of their response to adversity and to that 1-0 message and that next-play mentality and now the real work is here to where we have to go and reload it," Coen said. "We're not going to just stand here and say, man, we're just going to re-do it all with all the same, same, same, same because that got us 13 wins and knocked out of the playoffs in the first round."

Gladstone and Coen will offer a great deal of continuity this offseason heading into the 2026 season. The general manager will have to make some tough calls in free agency and navigate a draft without a Top 10 selection, while the head coach and his staff will remain relatively the same, providing much-needed balance for a roster that has not had much in recent years, including Lawrence, who has never had the same group of coaches together in consecutive seasons.

What 2025 proved was that a coach and GM along the same lineage of thinking, pursuing an ever-evolving, yet innovative approach to success within an organization that has not been known for it throughout the 21st century. Now, the task of maintaining these winning ways will define the tandem in the coming seasons.

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