Courtesy of USA Today
The Jacksonville Jaguars hired Doug Marrone to be their new head coach and have added Tom Coughlin as the new Executive VP of Football Operations, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
The first move to shed the interim label from Marrone’s title is somewhat surprising, given the hot coaching names out there this year, but Coughlin being added as an executive is something we expected to happen based on reports in December.
Coughlin was the original head coach when Jacksonville entered the NFL as an expansion team back in 1995. His close ties to the organization, along with his vast connections around the league and sharp football mind, should serve as a strong anchor for the team going forward.
What remains unclear is the status of Blake Bortles as the team’s starting quarterback going forward. Coughlin is rumored to not be a fan at all, while Marrone’s support of Bortles was reportedly one of the biggest reasons he was hired.
Based on how hard it is to develop quarterbacks these days, and given the fact that Jacksonville drafted a quarterback early in the first round twice in recent years, we’re leaning towards Marrone winning that battle.