Liam Coen Weighs In On Age-Old Sports Debate

Head Coach Liam Coen and the new staff for the Jacksonville Jaguars have leaned heavily into analytics. They've been one of the most aggressive teams in the NFL on fourth downs, currently 11th in attempts with 29. Removing the bottom-feeders who have less at stake has them tied for second with the Los Angeles Rams among playoff contenders, behind only the Carolina Panthers.

Sometimes it's bitten them. In their last game against the Indianapolis Colts, they turned it over on downs inside of Indy territory, and it nearly cost them. But Coen and his staff are willing to trust the analytics and be aggressive in situations that make sense and live with the consequences.

Jacksonville Jaguars, NFL, New York Jets, Head Coach Liam Coen — Dec 14, 2025; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Liam Coen during the first quarter against the New York Jets at EverBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Travis Register-Imagn Images | Travis Register-Imagn Images

Is momentum real?

Advanced analytics are great, but they can't account for the intangibles. They don't really factor in fatigue, confidence, or momentum. Many have made the claim that momentum isn't real, that it doesn't have any quantifiable effects on a game. At this point, it's impossible to actually measure momentum from a statistical standpoint, but that doesn't make it any less impactful.

Head Coach Liam Coen certainly believes in it: "Yeah, you feel it. Knowing that every entity is its own, every game is its own, every play is its own, every drive, every series. It's all its own entity, and you have to treat it that way, but yeah, you can feel momentum for sure. You can feel momentum swings in a game. You can feel them on a drive. You can feel them in a season. So, I don't think that you take that momentum and say, ‘Well, okay, this is just going to happen now because we have momentum.’ That's not the case."

“hindsight probably should’ve kicked it.”

but also

“we’ve gotta be able to gain a freaking yard”

great insight into the mind of Coach Coen on the decision to go for it on almost 4th & 2 when the #Jaguars were tied.@ActionSportsJax pic.twitter.com/ToXCtxQrKU
— Jason Hamby (@Jason_Hamby14) December 28, 2025

"You earn everything that you get in this league. You earn every opportunity that you get in this league, and you've got to take advantage of those moments when you do have momentum. You’ve got to take advantage of them. Your opponent can feel it. I know you can feel it as a coach. During a game, you can feel those things, but we haven't really talked too much about momentum. It's more so just like, ‘Hey, we're doing some good things. We've got to continue to seize the moment, take advantage of the opportunity that we do have.’ And that I think will, in turn, ride that momentum.”

Momentum doesn't magically make players perform better or increase a team's chances of success. Instead, it's about building a rhythm, gaining confidence, and exerting more effort due to the rising tide. The opposite is also true. Being on the wrong side of a momentous run can cause players to press, make more mental mistakes, doubt themselves, or even check out entirely. Momentum is real, and the Jacksonville Jaguars could have plenty of it going into the playoffs.

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