Time for Shad Khan to fire Doug Pederson after humiliating 47-10 loss at Bills

By Hays Carlyon

Jaguars coach Doug Pederson was hired to remove the stench of former coach Urban Meyer three years ago.

The Jaguars were an embarrassment under Meyer, in his lone season.

Pederson quickly made the Jaguars formidable, guiding the Jaguars to the AFC South title and a playoff win over the Los Angeles Chargers in 2022.

He was off to an 8-3 start last season. Pederson looked like the long-term answer here.

However, in stunningly fast fashion even by NFL standards, Pederson has lost his way.

The Jaguars are back to being an embarrassment with their play, with Monday night’s 47-10 loss at Buffalo in front of a national audience being the kind of game that removes all reasonable doubt about a slumping coach. The Bills led 34-3 at the half. Even Billy Napier was wincing.

Pederson is now 1-8 in his last nine games. How much more of this are we going to have to endure?

There’s an even more damning element to Pederson’s tenure that can’t be ignored any longer.

He isn’t getting through to franchise quarterback Trevor Lawrence.

Maybe no coach can. Maybe Lawrence, billed by many as a generational prospect when he was taken with the first pick in 2021, can’t be reached. Maybe he’s just an average starting quarterback in this league.

I don’t believe that.

Jaguars owner Shad Khan can’t believe that. He’s committed $200 million in guaranteed money to the 24-year-old Lawrence with the five-year extension signed this summer.

Khan now faces the most important football hire of his life. Finding a coach who believes in Lawrence and can build an offense that generates a much higher level of play.

It’s clear Pederson can’t.

While this season is close to doomed at 0-3, Khan now must take the steps of finding new football leadership.

He should fire Pederson today. Keeping him around Lawrence any longer will only make the next coach’s job harder. Pederson certainly could be culpable for Carson Wentz’s once-promising career derailing in Philadelphia and Khan can’t take the chance that history repeats itself.

Once Khan fires Pederson, he should appoint quarterbacks coach Mike McCoy as interim coach. McCoy’s first duty will be to fire offensive coordinator Press Taylor.

The 52-year-old McCoy coached the San Diego Chargers for four seasons (2013-16). He can be a suitable interim and seems to have a good relationship with Lawrence.

Khan will need to fire general manager Trent Baalke at some point too in the next couple of months.

The Jaguars need a fresh vision in the front office and coaching staff.

No, 72-year-old Bill Belichick isn’t the answer. Not for this situation.

The league is evolving and the Jaguars aren’t moving with it. Pederson and Taylor’s stagnant, uncreative system is obsolete compared to offensive schemes around the league. Neither will be snatched up next season to run anyone’s offense.

Khan has to find Lawrence the perfect teacher. A coach he can grow with ideally over the next decade. He should envision finding the next Sean Peyton-Drew Brees partnership.

Taking a long look at Detroit offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, 38, would be the place to start.

This is it. The Jaguars have one more try to salvage Lawrence’s career.

I’m amazed the end has come so quickly but it has. It’s undeniable.

This isn’t getting turned around. The Jaguars need to go 9-5 to finish with a winning record, which still might not be enough for a playoff berth. They’ve yet to play a division game (4-2 is best case historically) and still have contests with Green Bay, Philadelphia, Minnesota, Detroit and the New York Jets.

The sooner Lawrence can be removed from the Pederson-Taylor web the better.

The situation will only grow more toxic and damaging to his confidence by the day.

Pederson did a fantastic job in his first season here. He rebuilt the trust between players and coaches after the Meyer fiasco. However, he’s obviously reached the limit of what he can accomplish with this team.

When you’ve lost your last eight games with Lawrence as your starter, you don’t deserve to coach the Jaguars any longer.

(You can email Hays at [email protected] and follow him on Twitter/X @HaysCarlyon)