Why Liam Coen Must Turn Around Jaguars' Pass-Rush

The Jacksonville Jaguars have shown themselves as an above-average team when attacking the quarterback. Finishing the play is a whole other story.

Jacksonville is tied with the Baltimore Ravens for the least amount of sacks in the NFL, despite being 14th in total pressure, according to Next Gen Stats. Winning primarily with four-down defensive linemen has not succeeded for the Jaguars, forcing them to manufacture pressures and sacks. Even then, it has yielded futile results.

Head coach Liam Coen has been frustrated with his defense of late, a unit that once led the league in takeaways, but has secured a handful since Week 6. He spoke to reporters on Friday, discussing the Jaguars' pass rush and coverage issues at hand.

Coen on rushing four and finding consistency

Star defensive ends Josh Hines-Allen and Travon Walker have underwhelmed this season, lacking high-end production when attacking the passer. This week, ahead of the Jaguars' big home bout with the Los Angeles Chargers, Coen had great conversations with his two top defensive ends. However, the lack of consistent wins in pass rushes has affected the Jaguars in coverage as well, as Coen pointed out with key examples from the Chargers and the 2024 Philadelphia Eagles.

"Yeah, and look, when I say that it's got to be with the coverage though too now, it has to match," Coen stated. "You look at all the best, look at the Eagles last year. If we're just talking about, I read one of the Chargers, D-Lineman’s comments about if you could rush four and play coverage with seven, that is typically a good thing."

Walker Jags — Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Ventrell Miller (51) is high-fived by defensive end Travon Walker (44) as defensive tackle Arik Armstead (91) looks on during the fourth quarter of an NFL football matchup, Sunday, Oct. 12, 2025, at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. The Seahawks defeated the Jaguars 20-12. | Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Coen was not shy to say that he is rushing four, but went into deep detail on the situational aspects of the defense:

"I'm releasing four. If you can rush with four and my halfback is kind of helping to maybe chip somebody, well, now you truly have four against seven," Coen said. "I think those odds are usually going to be in the defense's favor if you're pattern-matching the right way. And the coverage is really getting a little bit less aired out and having a little bit less air to the coverage. Understanding third-and-three, third-and-five, second-and-eighth, second-and-12, where’s the sticks, it all kind of goes together."

Coen said his conversations with Hines-Allen and Walker were positive, saying the players are holding themselves accountable and that coaches are working hard on the details to get it right and improve the consistency up front.

Coen Jags — Nov 9, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Liam Coen reacts on the sidelines during the first half against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Shea-Imagn Images | Thomas Shea-Imagn Images

However, the word "loose" sprang up from Coen. He used it to show his quarterback, Trevor Lawrence, needed to play by letting the ball rip downfield and play aggressive, fearless football. He did it again with his defense, telling them to cut themselves loose and get after the football in pass rushes.

"At the end of the day man, just go, guys, don't think about it," Coen said. "Just cut it loose, run it, go and get off the rock. Just get off the rock and go man. And not saying we're going to stop the run on our way to the passer, but a little bit of that mentality, especially in some of those second downs."

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