JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jaguars made the first big hire of Liam Coen’s coaching tenure, tabbing Anthony Campanile for the defensive coordinator late Thursday night.
Nailing the coordinator hires are priorities No. 1 for Coen, a first-time head coach and the youngest of Jacksonville’s previous seven head coaches. He was hired late last week to help the Jaguars restore pride in the franchise after it had fallen off a ledge after an 8-3 start in 2023. Doug Pederson led the Jaguars to a 4-13 finish last season, part of a 5-18 stretch over the last season and a half that caused owner Shad Khan to make a change. The offense has regressed but the defense was about as bad as it had been in the franchise’s 30-year history.
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“Anthony Campanile represents exactly what we want to be as a defensive unit and football team,” Coen said. “He brings an aggressive defensive mindset and a system that is adaptable to our players and allows them to play fast and physical.”
Campanile was the linebackers coach and running game coordinator for the Packers last year. Green Bay had the seventh-best rushing defense in the league and ranked fifth in total defense (314.5 yards per game). Campanile spent four seasons as linebackers coach in Miami prior to leaving for Green Bay. Miami was no lower than eighth in sacks, rushing defense, forced fumbles, takeaways and third-down defense in Campanile’s time there.
Any improvement on the defensive side of the ball will be a welcome change for owner Shad Khan and the Jaguars. One season after firing Mike Caldwell and replacing him with Ryan Nielsen, Jacksonville’s defense was the league’s worst in several categories.