One Former Jaguar Deserves Another Shot

The 2026 NFL season is barely underway, but it's already proven how difficult it is to staff a team.

Nov 23, 2025; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Detailed view of a Jacksonville Jaguars helmet at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

We're coming up on the one-year anniversary of when the Jacksonville Jaguars fired former general manager Trent Baalke. He exited the franchise with a 25-43 record throughout his tenure, with just one postseason trip to show for his work. One season later, and the Jaguars have zero regrets about cutting bait with Baalke.

It wasn't just his actual moves as general manager that led to his dismissal. Reportedly, several of the candidates that Jacksonville interviewed for head coach last offseason were unwilling to work with Baalke, including Liam Coen. In fact, Coen only took the job because the Jaguars fired their then-general manager, allowing Coen to help bring in James Gladstone instead.

Jacksonville Jaguars general manager Trent Baalke on the field with Jacksonville Jaguars running back Travis Etienne Jr. (1) before Saturday's game. The Jacksonville Jaguars hosted the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at EverBank Stadium for the Jaguars second preseason game of the season Saturday, August 17, 2024. [Bob Self/Florida Times-Union] | Bob Self/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK

Maybe Trent Baalke has learned from his mistakes

In the first year under their new regime, the Jacksonville Jaguars won 13 games, tying their second-best mark in franchise history, reclaimed the AFC South crown, and hosted a playoff bout with the Buffalo Bills. There's really no reason for the team to have any remorse over parting ways with Trent Baalke.

However, a closer examination will show that many of the key pieces responsible for Jacksonville's run this past season were Baalke products. 12 different starters for the 2025 Jaguars were his draft picks, including several breakout players like Devin Lloyd, Montaric Brown, Brenton Strange, and Cam Little. Of course, Baalke had plenty of misses, too, many of which new General Manager James Gladstone quickly made sure to cleanse from the roster.

1.6.25: Pederson fired/Baalke retained

1.22.25: Liam Coen pulls name out of Jags HC search.

1.22.25: Trent Baalke fired.

1.23.25: Liam Coen hired as HC.

2.3.25: Tony Boselli hired as EVP.

2.21.25: Gladstone hired as GM.

1.4.26: #Jaguars win the AFC South with a 13-4 record. pic.twitter.com/nSERlYVD67

— Jaguars Now (@JaguarsNow95) January 5, 2026

But the NFL Draft is a crapshoot, and in retrospect, Baalke has a pretty decent record in that arena of general management. However, it's not the only part of a GM's job, and one could say that building relationships is possibly even more important than identifying talent. Due to his sour reputation, Baalke isn't even in the NFL right now, despite his successful record in the draft.

With how crucial finding impactful players on rookie-scale deals is to roster-building, though, it wouldn't be shocking to see him get another chance someday, at least in a smaller capacity as a scout or something along those lines.

That's going to be contingent on whether he can fix his fatal flaw: being such a pill of a colleague that several people literally turned down their dream jobs to avoid working with him. Purely from a performance perspective, Baalke deserves another shot — just not with the Jacksonville Jaguars.

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