Three head coaching vacancies are currently in place in the NFL, and the Jets will also be in the market for a new general manager this offseason. More openings are expected in the near future, with Jacksonville remaining a team to watch on both fronts. 
Head coach Doug Pederson and general manager Trent Baalke have been the subject of considerable speculation regarding in-season firings. Both have survived in that respect despite the Jaguars’ 3-12 record entering Sunday’s action, but owner Shad Khan will have several key decisions to make once the campaign is over. No major developments have emerged from the front office as it pertains to potential changes this winter, though.
Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero of NFL Network write Khan has remained quiet in terms of connections emerging as candidates to replace Pederson and/or Baalke. Still, the pair notes a sense of “major change” being imminent remains in the organization. Pederson has been in place since 2022, while Baalke’s tenure in Duval County began one year earlier. Jacksonville made the postseason in 2022, and the team matched that record last year. Expectations were high as a result, but struggles on both sides of the ball have been witnessed with and without quarterback Trevor Lawrence in the lineup.
On more than one occasion, reports have indicated a rift between Pederson and Baalke; that, in turn, has fueled further expectation that at least one member of the pair will be dismissed after the campaign. If only one firing is to take place, Baalke is believed to be on stronger footing than Pederson, but nothing is certain at this point. Bill Belichick had been floated as a potential hire (especially in the event of Khan fully cleaning house), although his decision to take North Carolina’s head coaching gig has made that a moot point.
CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones confirms Khan has not yet actively engaged in discussions with outside candidates on the coaching and general manager fronts (video link). Khan is known to be patient, though, so that approach comes as little surprise with time remaining in the regular season. After next week, more clarity will emerge with respect to which changes will be taking place for 2025, and as a result the focus of the team’s targets for outside hires will likely be narrowed.
For the time being, however, no signals have been made by Khan – who before the start of the season made it clear he felt the 2024 Jaguars were the most talented in franchise history. How he proceeds after the end of the season will be one of the league’s top storylines.
