Sometimes, maybe, don’t do that. Just don’t.
Former Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Liam Coen had one of those moments at his introductory press conference as head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars on January 27 following a drama-filled week of “will he or won’t he” moments.
Coen showed the ability to produce a previously unseen level of cringe as he tried to say the Jaguars’ “signature” rallying cry of “Duuuuuval!” in honor of the county the team is located in.
It didn’t go great. People noticed.
“Not so sure about Liam Coen after this one,” BetMGM wrote on its official X account.
“Liam Coen with the worst sounding #DUUUVAL I have ever heard uh oh,” Unbiased Jags wrote on its official X account.
“Let’s hope for Liam Coen this doesn’t go as poorly as Russell Wilson saying ‘Broncos nation. Let’s ride,’ ” No Off-Season Sports wrote on its official X account.
“Yep, Liam Coen is already finished in Jacksonville,” 4-Orange wrote on its official X account. “There’s no coming back from this.”
Some did come to Coen’s defense, pointing out that a weird moment in an introductory press conference should have no bearing on what kind of coach he becomes.
“You mocked (Nick) Sirianni for his Intro Presser,” ESPN’s Sam Block wrote on his official X account. “You mocked (Dan) Campbell for his Intro Presser. Now you’re mocking Liam Coen for his. I don’t care if you don’t like his ‘Duval.’ The Jags hired a great football coach.”
Coen’s About Face Shocked Buccaneers
The Athletic’s Greg Auman broke the news on January 24 that Coen was set to become the next head coach of the Jaguars. That came just days after Coen took his name out of the Jaguars’ coaching search and the Buccaneers agreed to make him one of the NFL’s highest paid coordinators.
“I can confirm that Liam Coen has notified the Bucs he’s taking the Jaguars’ head coaching job,” Auman wrote on his official X account. “Wild turn in last two days, taking his name out of Jags’ search to get a nice raise and stay with Bucs, only to change course for much larger raise and top job in Jacksonville.”
It’s the second consecutive season the Buccaneers’ offensive coordinator has been poached as the head coach for another NFL team after the Carolina Panthers hired Dave Canales following the 2023 season.
Coen’s Long Back and Forth With Bucs, Jags
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on January 22 that Coen was spurning the Jaguars to stay in Tampa Bay and become one of the NFL’s highest paid coordinators.
“Buccaneers offensive coordinator Liam Coen is taking himself out of the running for the Jaguars’ head coaching job to stay in Tampa on a new contract that now will place him amongst the highest-paid coordinators in the NFL, per sources,” Schefter wrote on his official X account on January 22. “Bucs are keeping their OC.”
On January 21, Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times reported the Buccaneers were operating under the belief Coen would be offered the Jacksonville job.
According to Front Office Sports, the 2 highest paid offensive coordinators in the NFL in 2024 were Todd Monken of the Baltimore Ravens and Mike Kafka of the New York Giants at approximately $3 million per year.
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Former Bucs OC Liam Coen’s Awkward Moment at Jaguars Intro