Doug Marrone - Pro Football Rumors

Jaguars Expected To Fire Doug Marrone, Target Urban Meyer

January 2nd, 2021 at 3:45pm CST by Sam Robinson

After coaching a depleted team that ended up losing 14 straight games — and securing the 2021 No. 1 overall pick — Doug Marrone is expected to be fired. The Jaguars are planning to end Marrone’s four-plus-season tenure after Week 17, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports.

Although the Jags have not made a final decision, Marrone narrowly avoided an ouster after the 2019 season. The team has since fired GM Dave Caldwell, and seeing a coach hang onto his job after a 14-game losing streak would obviously be quite unusual.

The team appears to be moving fast on Marrone’s replacement, eyeing Urban Meyer. The former Florida and Ohio State coach has already begun lining up a staff, according to Rapoport, who adds the ex-national champion expects to land the Jacksonville job.

At least two teams have reached out to Meyer about a head coaching role; the Jaguars certainly appear to be one of the two. Meyer, who has a history of spurning interest or leaving posts abruptly, has not committed to coaching in 2021, Rapoport adds.

Two of Meyer’s three national championships came in north Florida, when he led the Gators to titles in 2006 and ’08. This would make Jacksonville a logical landing spot. A greater interest has emerged in the Jaguars job due to the expected arrival of Clemson phenom Trevor Lawrence. Meyer has landed on other NFL teams’ radars in the past, but this time his interest in the pros appears genuine. Meyer, 56, stepped down multiple times at Florida and left his Ohio State post — at which he claimed a third national championship — in 2019.

If Meyer again ends up declining a path to the pros, the Jaguars have another option in mind. In this scenario, the Jags, per Rapoport (on Twitter), would target Meyer’s Ohio State successor — Ryan Day. Unlike Meyer, Day has NFL experience. He served as QBs coach for the 2015 Eagles and 2016 49ers. Both those gigs came under Chip Kelly, and those respective organizations cleaned house after each of those campaigns. Day, 41, has been at Ohio State since 2017, rising to their head coaching position in 2019. Day will coach Ohio State in the upcoming national championship game.

Marrone’s first full Jacksonville season went better than just about anyone could have expected. The Blake Bortles-quarterbacked team ventured to the AFC championship game, upsetting the Steelers in Round 2. The Jags nearly pulled off a bigger upset but squandered a late lead against the Patriots. Everything went downhill from there. After an ill-fated Bortles extension backfired, the Jags did not come close to competing for a playoff spot again under Marrone.

The team fired executive VP Tom Coughlin before last season ended, and while ownership kept the Caldwell-Marrone duo in place, the Jaguars purged most of the players from their 2017 squad from the roster. Even after trading the likes of Jalen Ramsey, A.J. Bouye, Calais Campbell and Yannick Ngakoue, the Jags placed many of their new starters on IR. This helped key the 14-game skid that ended up securing the franchise the No. 1 overall pick. Jacksonville holds two first-round picks in the upcoming draft, and a new coach will be in charge of attempting to resurrect a franchise that has not made the playoffs in back-to-back seasons since the 1990s.

Longest-Tenured Head Coaches In The NFL

May 16th, 2020 at 1:55pm CST by Zachary Links

Things move fast in today’s NFL and the old adage of “coaches are hired to be fired” has seemingly never been more true. For the most part, teams change their coaches like they change their underwear.

A head coach can take his team to the Super Bowl, or win the Super Bowl, or win multiple Super Bowls, but they’re never immune to scrutiny. Just ask Tom Coughlin, who captured his second ring with the Giants after the 2011 season, only to receive his pink slip after the 2015 campaign.

There are also exceptions. Just look at Bill Belichick, who just wrapped up his 20th season at the helm in New England. You’ll also see a few others on this list, but, for the most part, most of today’s NFL head coaches are relatively new to their respective clubs. And, history dictates that many of them will be elsewhere when we check in on this list in 2022.

Over one-third (12) of the NFL’s head coaches have coached no more than one season with their respective teams. Meanwhile, less than half (15) have been with their current clubs for more than three years. It seems like just yesterday that the Cardinals hired Kliff Kingsbury, right? It sort of was – Kingsbury signed on with the Cardinals in January of 2019. Today, he’s practically a veteran.

Here’s the list of the current head coaches in the NFL, ordered by tenure, along with their respective start dates:

Bill Belichick (New England Patriots): January 27, 2000
Sean Payton (New Orleans Saints): January 18, 2006
Mike Tomlin (Pittsburgh Steelers): January 27, 2007
John Harbaugh (Baltimore Ravens): January 19, 2008
Pete Carroll (Seattle Seahawks): January 9, 2010
Andy Reid (Kansas City Chiefs): January 4, 2013
Bill O’Brien (Houston Texans): January 2, 2014
Mike Zimmer (Minnesota Vikings): January 15, 2014
Dan Quinn (Atlanta Falcons): February 2, 2015
Doug Pederson (Philadelphia Eagles): January 18, 2016
Sean McDermott (Buffalo Bills): January 11, 2017
Doug Marrone (Jacksonville Jaguars): December 19, 2016 (interim; permanent since 2017)
Anthony Lynn (Los Angeles Chargers): January 12, 2017
Sean McVay (Los Angeles Rams): January 12, 2017
Kyle Shanahan (San Francisco 49ers): February 6, 2017
Matt Nagy (Chicago Bears): January 7, 2018
Matt Patricia (Detroit Lions): February 5, 2018
Frank Reich (Indianapolis Colts): February 11, 2018
Jon Gruden (Las Vegas Raiders): January 6, 2018
Mike Vrabel (Tennessee Titans): January 20, 2018
Kliff Kingsbury (Arizona Cardinals): January 8, 2019
Zac Taylor (Cincinnati Bengals): February 4, 2019
Vic Fangio (Denver Broncos): January 10, 2019
Matt LaFleur (Green Bay Packers): January 8, 2019
Brian Flores (Miami Dolphins): February 4, 2019
Adam Gase (New York Jets): January 11, 2019
Bruce Arians (Tampa Bay Buccaneers): January 8, 2019
Ron Rivera (Washington Redskins): January 1, 2020
Matt Rhule (Carolina Panthers): January 7, 2020
Mike McCarthy (Dallas Cowboys): January 7, 2020
Joe Judge (New York Giants): January 8, 2020
Kevin Stefanski (Cleveland Browns): January 13, 2020

Jaguars To Retain HC Doug Marrone, GM Dave Caldwell

December 31st, 2019 at 9:07am CST by Rory Parks

The Jaguars will retain head coach Doug Marrone and GM Dave Caldwell for the 2020 season, as Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network reports (via Twitter). There were conflicting reports over the weekend as to what owner Shad Khan would do, but for the second year in a row, Khan has elected for continuity.

Of course, Khan did fire executive vice president of football operations Tom Coughlin on December 18, and he indicated in a statement that he would not be filling Coughlin’s role. Instead, Marrone and Caldwell will continue to report to Khan directly, just as they have been doing since Coughlin’s dismissal. That means that Caldwell, who lost final say over personnel matters when Coughlin was hired in 2017, will regain that authority.

Khan said he met with Marrone, Caldwell, and their respective staffs in recent days, and it was those meetings — not the team’s 38-20 win over the Colts in Sunday’s meaningless finale — that led to his decision. However, Khan stressed that the team’s last-place finish in 2019 was not acceptable, and it sounds as if both Marrone and Caldwell could be on a short leash moving forward.

And that stands to reason, as neither man has set the world ablaze during their tenures in Jacksonville. Marrone is 22-28 since taking over as the club’s head coach towards the end of the 2016 season, and the Jags are 36-76 since Caldwell was hired as GM in January 2013. Of course, everyone remembers the run Jacksonville made in 2017, which nearly culminated in a Super Bowl berth, but even though that was just two years ago, the regression the club has seen since then makes it feel like a lot longer.

Marrone himself was not considering any major changes to his coaching staff, though as Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network tweets, it’s unclear whether his meeting with Khan will have changed his stance.

Khan’s statement may be found in its entirety here, courtesy of the team’s official website, but it reads in part as follows:

“The 2019 season was unacceptable and I’ve made my dissatisfaction clear. While many unusual circumstances influenced our season, none can fully explain or defend our second-half collapse with first place in the division within reach on Week 9. At the same time, there were positive developments and contributions that should not be overlooked.

We came out of our AFC Championship Game season of 2017 by making a four-year commitment to the collective leadership of our football operations. Only two seasons have passed and one change from that leadership team has already been made. I want to see what we produce under a new organizational structure in 2020. Goals have been established. Accountability will be paramount.”

Black Monday Rumors: McDaniels, Bieniemy, Browns

December 30th, 2019 at 11:41am CST by Rory Parks

The Giants have fired head coach Pat Shumur, the Browns have fired head coach Freddie Kitchens, Cleveland GM John Dorsey‘s fate is up in the air, Bruce Allen is out with the Redskins, Ron Rivera looks like he’s in, and we have a lot more to pass along:

The Giants are rumored to be targeting Baylor head coach Matt Rhule, but they have requested an interview with Chiefs OC Eric Bieniemy, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com adds (via Twitter) that the Panthers have also requested a summit with Bieniemy, a branch of the fruitful Andy Reid coaching tree whom Reid feels is ready for an HC job.
We heard this morning that the Browns have requested an interview with Patriots OC Josh McDaniels, and they also want to interview Ravens OC Greg Roman, per Schefter (via Twitter). Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal tweets that Cleveland is expected to interview Vikings OC Kevin Stefanski again. Stefanski was a finalist for the Browns’ HC job last year before they elected to hire Kitchens.
Schefter says the Browns have asked permission to interview 49ers DC Robert Saleh (Twitter link), and Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com says the team plans to interview Mike McCarthy as well (Twitter link). Cleveland had an interview scheduled with McCarthy last year, but by that time, the club had already zeroed in on Kitchens, so the interview never happened. McCarthy and Dorsey worked together in Green Bay, so Dorsey may be rooting for a McCarthy hire.
In addition to the Browns, the Giants and Panthers have also requested interviews with McDaniels, as Schefter tweets.
Despite recent reports indicating that he wants to stay in Baltimore, Ravens DC Don “Wink” Martindale is generating a great deal of HC buzz, as Rapoport tweets. If he is hired, Martindale would want to pluck LSU passing game coordinator/wide receivers coach Joe Brady from the collegiate ranks to be his OC. If you’ve watched college football this year, you can’t blame Martindale for that choice.
Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone will meet with owner Shad Khan tomorrow to discuss his fate, as NFL insider Adam Caplan tweets.

Jaguars To Fire Head Coach Doug Marrone?

December 28th, 2019 at 11:38am CST by Ben Levine

Black Monday has potentially started early. ESPN’s Dianna Russini reports (via Twitter) that the Jaguars have informed head coach Doug Marrone that he’ll be fired following Sunday’s season finale.

However, Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com tweets that Marrone has not been informed of his impending firing. NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero tweets that Marrone had dinner on Friday night with owner Shad Khan and SVP Tony Khan, but no decision has been made about the coach’s future. Pelissero adds that there’s a “real chance” he sticks around.

Owner Shad Khan’s spokesman told NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport that reports of the dismissal are false (Twitter link).

“Reports that Doug Marrone will be dismissed after Sunday’s game are 100 percent incorrect. Owner Shad Khan will meet with his football staff, which includes coaching and personnel, midweek next week.”

Following an underwhelming two seasons as the Bills head coach, Marrone took on the Jaguars gig towards the end of the 2014 campaign. He impressed during his first full season in Jacksonville, guiding the team to 10 wins and an AFC Championship appearance. After that season, the organization signed Marrone to an extension that was intended to keep him in Jacksonville through the 2021 season.

Unfortunately, the team took a major step back in 2018, finishing with a 5-11 record. The 2019 iteration of the Jaguars could match that record with a loss to the Colts on Sunday. This past offseason, the team signed quarterback Nick Foles to solidify their offense. However, Foles suffered a broken collarbone in his first regular season action. Rookie quarterback Gardner Minshew took the league by storm while Foles recovered, but is far from a dynamic option. The more concerning occurrence for the Jaguars has been the deterioration of their elite defense to one of the more inconsistent units in football.

We heard earlier this week that the Jaguars were leaning towards retaining Marrone (along with general manager Dave Caldwell). Khan reportedly wanted to maintain continuity, and the firing of executive vice president of football operations Tom Coughlin was assumed to be the only major shakeup. There was additional optimism when it was learned that Tony Khan, the team’s EVP and son of the owner, is expected to take on an increased role in the organization. The younger Khan reportedly had a good relationship with Marrone.

The Jaguars join the Panthers and Redskins among teams with head coach vacancies. There will surely be more teams added to that list on Monday.

Coaching Rumors: Jaguars, Browns, Panthers, Patriots

December 27th, 2019 at 8:10pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

The 2019 regular season is winding down, which means the coaching carousel is about to start ramping up. Earlier today the Falcons announced Dan Quinn would be back for 2020, crossing one potential opening off the list. This is shaping up to be a potentially quiet year in terms of number of coaches fired, but there should still be a good amount of action. One man still on the hot seat is the Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone. The latest reporting indicated the Jags were leaning toward keeping Marrone and GM Dave Caldwell, and we have more info to back that up now. Tony Khan, the team’s EVP and son of owner Shad Khan, is expected to take on an increased role in the organization, according to Albert Breer of SI.com.

That’s good news for Marrone and Caldwell, since Breer writes that the younger Khan has a good relationship with both. He further adds that “things are trending toward” the duo “surviving the weekend.” Tom Coughlin, the team’s head of football operations, was fired recently and has been taking the brunt of the blame for the organization’s spiral.

Here’s the latest from around the league:

There’s been a lot of speculation that Browns head coach Freddie Kitchens could be one and done, as Cleveland has been a dumpster fire all year long. Breer writes that Browns owner Jimmy Haslam initially seemed inclined to keep him around for a second year, but that recently Haslam has “kept his cards closer to the vest.” Even if Kitchens survives, Breer says he expects there to be significant changes to his staff. It’s been “an open secret that offensive coordinator Todd Monken hasn’t been happy” this season, he reports. How the Browns fare in Week 17 against the 1-14 Bengals could go a long way in determining Kitchens’ future.
Everyone that Breer has talked to indicated that the Panthers are going to conduct an extensive search for Ron Rivera’s replacement. Notably, Breer has learned that the search is expected to include a college coach or two. Baylor coach Matt Rhule and Oklahoma coach Lincoln Riley have been two college coaches heavily linked to NFL jobs recently. New owner David Tepper is looking to put his stamp on the team, and it’ll be very interesting to see which direction he heads. He’s been very keen on analytics, so a younger offensive-minded hire wouldn’t be surprising. Further, Breer writes to “keep an eye out” for Josh McDaniels and the Panthers. The Patriots offensive coordinator nearly took the Colts’ job two cycles ago, and will be a hot name again this time around. Whoever the Panthers hire “will have considerable say over the football operation, in areas like strength-and-conditioning, training and video,” Breer reports.
Speaking of the Patriots, Nick Caserio isn’t the only exec in their building who could get poached. Breer speculates that McDaniels could try to lure pro personnel director Dave Ziegler with him if he leaves to become a head coach. Given that Caserio and director of college scouting Monti Ossenfort are both on expiring contracts, Breer thinks the Pats might work hard to retain Ziegler.

Jaguars To Retain HC Doug Marrone, GM Dave Caldwell?

December 22nd, 2019 at 8:47am CST by Rory Parks

We heard last week that the Jaguars were considering a major organizational shakeup, with head coach Doug Marrone, executive vice president of football operations Tom Coughlin, and GM Dave Caldwell potentially all on the chopping block. Since then, Coughlin was fired, and Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports that his dismissal may be the only major coaching/front office change Jacksonville makes.

Team owner Shad Khan, despite his apparent predilection for current and former Patriots staffers, would prefer to maintain continuity. Rapoport says the Coughlin firing was well-received in the locker room, and he adds that Marrone had to constantly put out fires regarding Coughlin’s fining system. If his team performs well over the final two weeks of the season, Marrone could be back.

The same goes for Caldwell, whose past couple of drafts have been good enough to give him a chance to be retained. Although the team’s front office will have to somehow deal with Nick Foles‘ contract, the fact that Coughlin is out of the picture has apparently made agents comfortable with having their clients sign with the Jags.

To replace Coughlin, Khan may turn to his son, Tony Khan. Tony Khan currently serves as vice chairman and director of football operations for Fulham Football Club, and he has an analytics-driven approach that would fit in well with the modern game.

The Jags close out the 2019 season with winnable games against the Falcons and Colts.

South Notes: Godwin, Peat, Marrone

December 19th, 2019 at 12:10pm CST by Rory Parks

Buccaneers WR Chris Godwin left Sunday’s victory over Detroit due to a hamstring injury, and since Tampa Bay is out of playoff contention, Godwin’s breakout 2019 campaign may end prematurely. Curiously, fellow wideout Mike Evans has already been placed on IR with a hamstring ailment, and yet another receiver, Scott Miller, also left the Lions game due to a hamstring issue.

That has led some to question the way in which head coach Bruce Arians is running things, and as Eduardo A. Encina of the Tampa Bay Times writes, Arians has conceded that he may be overworking his receivers. “We’ll be talking with our sports science people about it,” Arians said. “Maybe I’ve overworked them in practice, the receivers, because we need the reps. Our quarterbacks need the reps, so we run them this time of the year more than I would probably like to, but we need the reps.” The hamstring injuries may all just be a coincidence, but it’s worth keeping an eye on the team’s new sports science department moving forward.

Jenna Laine of ESPN.com says Arians has already ruled Godwin out for Week 16 but hopes he will play in the 2019 finale.

Now for more from the league’s south divisions:

Good news for the playoff-bound Saints. As Mike Triplett of ESPN.com tweets, New Orleans guard Andrus Peat, who has missed the last five games with a broken arm, has returned to practice. The team’s offense has performed just fine in Peat’s absence, but the Saints would surely like to have their 2018 Pro Bowler back in action.
The Saints continued to bolster their secondary by adding safety D.J. Swearinger on Wednesday, just two days after claiming CB Janoris Jenkins. As Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle observes, the Saints did their due diligence in the DB market before signing Swearinger, working out nine total players (Twitter link). That list included recognizable vets DeShawn Shead and Kentrell Brice.
The Jaguars parted ways with executive vice president Tom Coughlin yesterday, and many believe that head coach Doug Marrone will be axed at the end of the season. However, Marrone said he has not heard anything in that regard from owner Shad Khan, nor does he expect to (h/t Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk). Meanwhile, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk believes that, since Khan did not also fire Marrone when he fired Coughlin, Marrone (and GM Dave Caldwell) could be back in 2020. But Coughlin seems to have been fired largely as a result of a damning NFLPA report that surfaced Monday, so the fact that Marrone and Caldwell will stay on board for the rest of 2019 probably doesn’t mean very much.
The Colts tried to shore up their CB position by signing Briean Boddy-Calhoun yesterday, and as Wilson tweets, Indy also brought in CB Ken Crawley for a tryout.

Jaguars Expected To Make Major Offseason Changes

December 15th, 2019 at 12:21pm CST by Rory Parks

It has been speculated for some time that the Jaguars may undergo a major organizational overhaul this offseason, and sources tell Adam Schefter of ESPN.com that the club is indeed expected to make significant changes in the new year.

Many around the league expect head coach Doug Marrone to be fired, per Schefter. Others believe that executive vice president of football operations Tom Coughlin could step aside to spend more time with family.

Schefter’s report did not offer any concrete rumors as to GM Dave Caldwell, but recent reports have suggested that he may be on the chopping block as well. Of course, owner Shad Khan considered a shakeup after the 2018 season, but he opted to remain patient. However, his patience has not been rewarded, and the Jags have sputtered to a 4-9 record in 2019.

This same power structure guided Jacksonville to the AFC Championship Game in 2017, and the team was one quarter away from upsetting the Patriots in that contest and advancing to the Super Bowl. The Jags looked like a team on the rise, but they have regressed in a big way and now look like they could be headed for yet another rebuild.

AFC South Notes: Jags, Tannehill, Funchess

December 1st, 2019 at 12:05pm CST by Rory Parks

As they limp towards the end of their second consecutive disappointing campaign, the Jaguars could be looking at a major organizational overhaul this offseason, as Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports writes. Several members of head coach Doug Marrone‘s staff believe Marrone will be fired at season’s end, and questions remain as to how long team president Tom Coughlin will remain with the club.

Indeed, La Canfora says members of Jacksonville’s front office are just as concerned about their job security as the team’s coaches and are beginning to explore opportunities elsewhere. Owner Shad Khan did consider a significant shakeup last year before opting to retain Marrone, Coughlin, and GM Dave Caldwell, but he may not be as patient this time. If Khan does elect to make a GM change, La Canfora names Scott Pioli as a potential replacement, and Patriots OC Josh McDaniels could be on the short list of replacements for Marrone.

Now for more from the AFC South:

The Titans are interested in extending their relationship with quarterback Ryan Tannehill beyond 2019, and as La Canfora writes, the franchise tag could be in play for Tannehill. The tag would come with a roughly $27MM cap hit, but with Tannehill suddenly a hot commodity, the club could hit him with the tag as a precursor to a multi-year pact. Of course, much depends on how Tannehill finishes the season, and while the two sides are unlikely to engage in contract talks in the short term, Tannehill looks set to cash in once the season is over.
Despite some hope that veteran wideout Devin Funchess would be returning to the field soon, the Colts have decided to shut him down for the year, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Funchess, who suffered a fractured collarbone during Indianapolis’ Week 1 loss to the Chargers, simply has not healed enough, per Rapoport, who says the plate inserted into the fracture did not work out as hoped. This is a difficult blow for the Colts, who have seen many of their top skill players miss time due to injury this year.
The Texans have been in the news a great deal over the last two days. The team placed first-round rookie Tytus Howard on IR on Saturday, and today we learned that the club will operate without a GM in 2020. Houston also got some potentially exciting news, as J.J. Watt could return to the field in time for the playoffs.