Changing Clocks: Jaguars Locker Room Reacts to the Firing of Tom Coughlin

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A day after the Jacksonville Jaguars locker room spoke at length about the fines levied against players over the last three years, the same players had to reflect on the sudden firing of executive vice president of football operations Tom Coughlin.

Coughlin was relieved of his duties by Jaguars owner Shad Khan on Wednesday night, two weeks before the conclusion of the 2019 season. Khan said in a statement his plan was always to move on from Coughlin before the 2020 season, but his timeline changed.

So, what changed for the Jaguars' players? Other than all of the clocks inside of TIAA Bank Field going forward five minutes and back to their normal settings, not much. With Coughlin gone, so was Coughlin time.

"That is the first thing I noticed when I got in here. I thought that I was late for meetings - I look up and I have an extra five minutes," Cornerback A.J. Bouye said Thursday. "So I was good. That is the only thing that has really changed. Like I said, the approach of the players and the coaches is all going to stay the same."

"It probably threw me off when I first got here. I thought I was late," defensive tackle Abry Jones said about the clocks throughout the facilities. "But that is probably the strongest adjustment we are going to get to is just resetting back to five minutes back. But other than that, no other big difference."

Head coach Doug Marrone stressed earlier in the day to local media, and then later to his own team, that despite the change in the organization the focus will remain on the team's Week 16 game vs. the Atlanta Falcons. His players repeated this message in the locker room.

"Coach Marrone and them did a good job of saying besides that, we still got two games to go. Everything is still up for grabs, you can’t just be relaxed now and think the season is over. So we are just planning for Atlanta," Bouye said.

So if nothing has changed other than the clocks, what is Coughlin's impact on the team and how do they feel about his firing? Most said they respected Coughlin despite his strict ways. If anything, they still see him as a legendary football figure.

Coughlin's tenure in Jacksonville ended in ugly fashion after the NFLPA released a blistering statement against the organization earlier this week for circumventing league collective bargaining agreement rules. Despite that, most in the locker room think his reputation and legacy are still intact. After all, he coached the New York Giants to two Super Bowl victories and led Jacksonville through its first era in 1995-2002.

"No, I don’t. I don’t think it is going to taint his legacy," cornerback D.J. Hayden said. "Coach Coughlin is a great coach, a great mentor. I mean, stuff happens. Teams cut their best players that have been on their teams for a long time after a certain point of time. It is just how the game goes sometimes."

"No. Why would that taint his legacy? He was known as a tough coach that got the job done," Jones said when asked the same question about Coughlin's legacy.

"Locker room didn’t really change. Still played music, y’all hear that from time to time. The only thing that really changed was our ping-pong table, and people played way too much ping-pong to begin with. It wasn’t like he was walking up and down the aisles and checking on people and stuff like that."

Out of all of Jacksonville's players, defensive lineman Calais Campbell may have had the best relationship with Coughlin. Coughlin adored Campbell as a player and leader, often referring to him as a model NFL player. For Campbell, he will have only positive memories of the former coach and executive.

"Obviously, I have a lot of respect for Coughlin. I wish him well. I don’t know what his plans are, but he is definitely a great man," Campbell said.

"I think my relationship is different than most ... We talked a lot of football. He is definitely a football fan like I am."

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