The Jacksonville Jaguars are in dire straits. An 0-3 start to a season which once held so much promise has now given ways to rumors of wholesale changes inside the organization — including firing head coach Doug Pederson.
Rumors are now positioning Bill Belichick as a possible answer to the Jags’ coaching woes, so today Football Court meets to argue whether this is a good idea or not. This is our debate series that attempts to answer some of football’s biggest questions, whether we personally agree with them or not.
The Jaguars should absolutely hire Bill Belichick — James Dator
Ladies and gentlemen, we don’t need to discuss Bill Belichick’s resume and waste the court’s time here. We all know he’s the greatest coach in the history of football, and a man constantly able to get the best out of the players available to him.
Instead my argument for Bill Belichick to become the head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars stems from two things:
- Available coaches
- A history of failure
For those who say Belichick would be a bad choice I ask: “Who is better?” We have seen the ranks of talents, promising head coaching candidates get absolutely decimated in the last two years to the point where there really aren’t many people who could make the jump from coordinator to coach in 2025. Sure, you could hope for the likes of Ben Johnson or Aaron Glenn from Detroit, but both men seem content (at least for now) to be coordinators and wait for the right spot to open. Is Jacksonville under Trent Baalke the right spot for a young head coach looking to make their mark? Absolutely not.
If you don’t hire Belichick, and the two most promising coordinators are off the market, then you begin scraping a barrel. Would Mike McCarthy be better if he’s fired in Dallas? Is Steve Spagnuolo willing to leave, or is he planning to be Andy Reid’s heir apparent? Ultimately this is not a buyer’s market for coaches, and now more than ever those with promise are waiting to find the right landing spot, rather than just jumping at the first available position.
Secondly, when it comes to coordinators moving to coach in Jacksonville the history is, well, atrocious. Look at the list of hot-shot coordinators who became the Jaguars’ head coach and tell me if this is really the right path forward? Both Mike Mularkey and Gus Bradley were widely hailed hires, and it worked out horrifically.
In order to make this work you need someone who can step in and win with Trevor Lawrence. There is absolutely no reason to believe Belichick can’t do that. On top of that he can squeeze more talent out of the players on the roster than anyone else, and while it might not be a long-term answer, it’s the only answer for right now.
Bill Belichick may be the greatest ever, but might not be the answer — Mark Schofield
Justice Acosta, ladies and gentlemen, and honored guests, in my years of practice — in both this jurisdiction and others — I have learned many things. Not to wade into quarterback discussions in Chicago. Always stand when addressing the bench, and this.
The most zealous advocate is often the one you would least expect.
I address you as a longtime New England Patriots fan. One who sat, broken-hearted, in front of the TV during Super Bowl XX. One who lived through two different dynasties, built in large part by Bill Belichick. One who believes that Belichick is without question one of the greatest coaches — not just football, but coaches, period — who will ever live.
But Bill Belichick is not the answer in Jacksonville.
The issues with the Jaguars go far deeper than one head coach, and as great as Belichick is, and could still be in the NFL, he alone cannot fix what ails Jacksonville.
There need to be bigger changes beyond the coach. Trent Baalke, who has made several critical decisions for this franchise, should certainly bear some of the blame in this situation. New decision-makers are needed in the front office, and can you find someone who Belichick will listen to? Or should listen to?
Or would the idea be to transfer all decision-making to Belichick?
Belichick the head coach is beyond reproach, but ask many Patriots fans and they may have some lingering questions about Belichick the general manager. Consider this tidbit from Albert Breer of The MMQB:
“Tony Khan has a really strong relationship with Bill Belichick, Shad’s son Tony. When they hired Doug Marrone and removed the interim tag in 2017, that was largely on the advice of Bill Belichick to do it. So Bill has had the ear of ownership in that place for a while now.”
Marrone went 23-43 during his time in Jacksonville and lost to Belichick in an AFC Championship Game.
Again, Belichick is headed straight to Canton, perhaps as early as 2026 under a change to the Hall of Fame selection rules. But the issues in Jacksonville go beyond the head coach, and bigger changes are needed.
Belichick may very well coach again, but the fit in Jacksonville — given what the organization needs beyond the head coach — is not the best for him, or for the team.
Verdict — JP Acosta
I would like to thank both Counsel Schofield and Counsel Dator for their very compelling arguments. As a fan of this Jaguars franchise that causes me eternal and chronic suffering and dread, I’ve seen a lot of things. Most notably, I’ve seen owner Shad Khan go for the relics of the past in his hires. Doug Marrone was the assistant head coach and offensive line coach for the Jaguars. Hiring him was easy; it was someone Khan knew, was in the system and wouldn’t change very much, and it allowed Khan to be hands off as an owner while everyone else did the work. Yet, Marrone was 15-17 as the former head coach of the Buffalo Bills and his ending there was unceremonious to say the least. Urban Meyer was a decorated college football coach with ties to the state of Florida. It was the big name Khan wanted, a new era of Jaguars’ football with the Florida guy in charge. Nevermind that he had zero NFL coaching experience and the reason he got out of coaching was because it almost killed him—this was finally it…and then it wasn’t. Doug Pederson was a Super Bowl-winning coach with the Philadelphia Eagles. An offensive guru who got the best out of QBs whenever he was around … just don’t look at how that Eagles tenure ended.
The word I want you to focus on here is was. Khan is so busy living in the past and going for the guys he’s seen on TV or in the room be successful and saying, “I want that” rather than moving forward into the new age of the NFL. The next hire the Jaguars make will be the most important one, because nothing is easy. Not a lot of cap space, an expensive QB who might be broken because of the environment you put him in, and a fanbase that is on the verge of bringing back the clown noses. The first step here is to fire Trent Baalke. No matter what gets done, Baalke can’t get away with the roster being as bad as it is. The second thing, is that the Jaguars should not hire Bill Belichick, as Counsel Schofield said.
I love Belichick as a coach, what he’s done defensively has revolutionized the game in every area. However, this team needs to move forward. It can’t keep looking back to past success, automatically assuming it’ll happen in Jacksonville. Coordinators like Arizona’s Drew Petzing come to mind as a guy who would really work in Jacksonville, and while Belichick brings success and a standard, remember: we said the same thing about Pederson. I’m also wary of Belichick getting full roster control as the GM, with nobody to make checks or provide any say outside of the Belichick sphere.
If Belichick wants to coach again, I think he should. However, Jacksonville isn’t the right spot for him.
