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PHOENIX — Shad Khan knows the Jacksonville Jaguars’ recent history after what they presumed was a breakthrough into regular NFL contention.
In 2017, after reaching the AFC championship game, the Jaguars cratered to 5-11, the start of four consecutive years in the division cellar.
In 2018, after reaching the AFC divisional round the prior season, the Jaguars lost five of their last six games to miss the postseason.
Will 2026 be different after the Jaguars went 13-4 in the first year led by coach Liam Coen, general manager James Gladstone and executive vice president of football operations Tony Boselli?
“I really believe that it (will be),” Khan told The Times-Union at the conclusion of the NFL’s Annual Meeting on Tuesday, March 31. “Really, after we played our last game (first-round loss to Buffalo) and you get over the pain and suffering of the result of that game, the big question for all of us was: How are we not going to backslide?
“We’ve had two instances when we had some success and then, boom. Certainly I’ve learned from those (seasons), what happened and why it happened. We got comfortable and complacent thinking, ‘We’re there and now we can go into cruise control.’ This is a competitive league and it doesn’t matter what your record was last year, you’re all starting from the bottom in how you construct the team and you need to have the motivation and desire.”
In his first comments since last October in London, when the Jaguars were 4-2, Khan praised the trio of Coen, Gladstone and Boselli, all of whom were hired amid an organizational reset in January 2025. Coen was a first-time head coach, Gladstone a first-time general manager and Boselli, albeit the Jaguars’ best-ever player and a Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee, was a first-time executive.
No matter. The Jaguars won the AFC South and finished the regular season with eight consecutive wins.
More from O'Halloran: NFL owners approve Jaguars playing 2027 games in Orlando
“Definitely a new level (of performance),” Khan said. “Up, close and personal, you can’t ask for anything more in how they supplement each other and help each other be better and hold each other accountable on whatever is necessary.
“Their contributions and how the whole set-up is (with an executive vice president) and the facilities we have and obviously our great players, they’re taking us to the next level.”
Khan is accustomed to seeing the Jaguars spend freely in free agency to make up for previous roster-building mistakes. This year, the team has added only one veteran, running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. from the Washington Commanders.
“Shad was saying, ‘Man, if we just could get the coaches out of the building during free agency, we’d all probably save a lot more money,’” Coen said.
Relayed that comment, Khan laughed and said: “That’s what I told him. I think it was fabulous. If you can (not rely on free agency), you make the team a lot better, frankly.”
The Jaguars will attempt to reach their first Super Bowl this year and post back-to-back winning seasons for only the second time since Khan bought the team before the 2012 season.
“We were in every game and if you look at it, there were a couple of games we lost we shouldn’t have,” Khan said. “But still, it was certainly the best year of my ownership and the great feeling I have is that it’s sustainable.”
Contact O’Halloran at [email protected]
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jaguars owner Shad Khan confident team's 2025 success 'sustainable'
Continue reading...
In 2017, after reaching the AFC championship game, the Jaguars cratered to 5-11, the start of four consecutive years in the division cellar.
In 2018, after reaching the AFC divisional round the prior season, the Jaguars lost five of their last six games to miss the postseason.
Will 2026 be different after the Jaguars went 13-4 in the first year led by coach Liam Coen, general manager James Gladstone and executive vice president of football operations Tony Boselli?
“I really believe that it (will be),” Khan told The Times-Union at the conclusion of the NFL’s Annual Meeting on Tuesday, March 31. “Really, after we played our last game (first-round loss to Buffalo) and you get over the pain and suffering of the result of that game, the big question for all of us was: How are we not going to backslide?
“We’ve had two instances when we had some success and then, boom. Certainly I’ve learned from those (seasons), what happened and why it happened. We got comfortable and complacent thinking, ‘We’re there and now we can go into cruise control.’ This is a competitive league and it doesn’t matter what your record was last year, you’re all starting from the bottom in how you construct the team and you need to have the motivation and desire.”
In his first comments since last October in London, when the Jaguars were 4-2, Khan praised the trio of Coen, Gladstone and Boselli, all of whom were hired amid an organizational reset in January 2025. Coen was a first-time head coach, Gladstone a first-time general manager and Boselli, albeit the Jaguars’ best-ever player and a Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee, was a first-time executive.
No matter. The Jaguars won the AFC South and finished the regular season with eight consecutive wins.
More from O'Halloran: NFL owners approve Jaguars playing 2027 games in Orlando
“Definitely a new level (of performance),” Khan said. “Up, close and personal, you can’t ask for anything more in how they supplement each other and help each other be better and hold each other accountable on whatever is necessary.
“Their contributions and how the whole set-up is (with an executive vice president) and the facilities we have and obviously our great players, they’re taking us to the next level.”
Khan is accustomed to seeing the Jaguars spend freely in free agency to make up for previous roster-building mistakes. This year, the team has added only one veteran, running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. from the Washington Commanders.
“Shad was saying, ‘Man, if we just could get the coaches out of the building during free agency, we’d all probably save a lot more money,’” Coen said.
Relayed that comment, Khan laughed and said: “That’s what I told him. I think it was fabulous. If you can (not rely on free agency), you make the team a lot better, frankly.”
The Jaguars will attempt to reach their first Super Bowl this year and post back-to-back winning seasons for only the second time since Khan bought the team before the 2012 season.
“We were in every game and if you look at it, there were a couple of games we lost we shouldn’t have,” Khan said. “But still, it was certainly the best year of my ownership and the great feeling I have is that it’s sustainable.”
Contact O’Halloran at [email protected]
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jaguars owner Shad Khan confident team's 2025 success 'sustainable'
Continue reading...
