JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Black Monday in the NFL is officially underway, and the Jacksonville Jaguars are at the center of the annual tradition that sees coaching hot seats turn into vacancies following the regular season’s conclusion.
Jags Head Coach Doug Pederson was fired on Monday following the team’s disappointing 4-13 season, capping off a stunning downfall after a surprise postseason appearance in 2022.
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Since that playoff season and an 8-3 start last year, Pederson and the Jaguars are 5-18 since briefly holding the No. 1 seed in the AFC. He ends his time in Jacksonville with a 22-29 record in the regular season and 1-1 in the playoffs.
Players were quick to note that Pederson’s firing is part of the business of the NFL, and many agreed moving on from Pederson was the right thing to do. But fans weren’t so understanding, especially because Trent Baalke, Jacksonville’s general manager, wasn’t shown the door along with the now-former head coach.
Doug Pederson was fired by the Jaguars this morning.
— Jamal St. Cyr (@JStCyrTV) January 6, 2025
Brenton Stange said the NFL is "cutthroat." pic.twitter.com/JWInW459l6
“Pederson was only a part of the problem,” one fan lamented. “Baalke and his poor personnel decisions, hiring, firing, and paying seem to be the primary problem this team has had since he arrived.”
Longtime Jags fan Patrick Jones said he’d rather see Baalke go instead of Pederson, citing the lack of “growth” and “wins” under Baalke, but adding that with Pederson, “you started to see a little bit of growth.”
Another fan echoed that sentiment, saying Pederson shouldn’t have been shown the door before Baalke was let go.
“Baalke should have been fired, then give Pederson the ultimatum to fire the OC and DC,” they suggested.
One fan got straight to the point.
“I am not happy. Baalke needs to go. I am reconsidering my tickets,” they said, which speaks to the potential economic ramifications of the team’s decision to keep its general manager.
Fans clamoring for Baalke to lose his job isn’t a new concept. During his time as general manager for the San Francisco 49ers, Baalke is blamed for running Jim Harbaugh out of town after three straight NFC Championship Game appearances and “survived” the firing of multiple head coaches (Mike Singletary, Jim Tomsula, Chip Kelly).
Trent Baalke got both his GM jobs, in San Francisco and Jacksonville, after his boss was fired. And in those jobs, he survived the firings of Mike Singletary, Jim Harbaugh, Jim Tomsula, Urban Meyer, and now Doug Pederson.
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) January 6, 2025
If you're familiar with the term "managing up" ...
Then in Jacksonville, a “protest” was held during the 2021-2022 season that involved hundreds of Jags fans dressing as clowns to take a shot at owner Shad Khan and Baalke.
More recently, a banner flew over EverBank Stadium during the Jaguars' final home game against the Titans, which read, “Shad-Fire Baalke! For Duval!”
Another potential impact of the decision to retain Baalke is how it impacts the search for Jacksonville’s next head coach.
According to NFL Insider Jordan Schultz, “Multiple sources emphasized that the Jaguars would struggle to attract a top head coach if they kept Trent Baalke.”
He continued to say that the team faced similar challenges after firing Urban Meyer during his tumultuous stint with the team.
Pederson’s fate was likely sealed before Sunday’s regular-season finale against the Colts. The slump started last year and the Jags' inability to find out how to win games in 2024, including an NFL-record 10 losses by a possession or less, didn’t help his prospects, especially since it occurred with the most expensive roster in franchise history.
Now, the franchise faces an all-too-familiar scenario, another reset. And while Baalke’s tenure has been highlighted by extreme highs and lows, the roster deficiencies are tough to overlook.
On Monday afternoon around 2 p.m., Khan and Baalke held a joint press conference and answered questions about the direction of the team and how they are expected to handle the search for a head coach, which is the regime’s third time trying to find a new coach under Baalke’s watch.
“We’re going to move quickly to get some people lined up to talk to,” Baalke said. “The process will take as long as it takes to identify the right individual.”
Khan added that he believes a complete overhaul would be “suicidal,” primarily citing the medical staff and other departments as elements that are operating successfully, while also saying that coaching was the area that needed “the most change.”
“We have health & wellness of the players, medical, stats and analysis, scouting; several other elements along with contract administration,” Khan explained. “All of those areas have changed and improved over the last 4 to 5 years. So, to change all of that, is almost like suicidal...You’ve got 85 people working on that side and you say, ‘I’m gonna find 85 new people and they’re gonna be better? That’s like shooting yourself in the foot.’”
He also spoke about the “predictability” on both sides of the ball, which he says led to much of the team’s struggles this season. Khan said correction in that department could lead to a turnaround happening rather quickly.
“If our defense would improve and our offense could be less predictable, we also have the ability [to improve] through the draft and using salary cap to get more specific players...I expect us to have success very quickly.”