The Jacksonville Jaguars are doing their best to get things turned around after an extremely disappointing season that saw them miss the playoffs entirely. At the conclusion of the season, head coach Doug Pederson was relieved of his duties, although the powers at be decided to retain the services of general manager Trent Baalke.
Then the Jags missed out of two top candidates to replace Pederson, with rumors circulating that neither candidate was keen on working with Baalke. The second miss of the coaching cycle appears to have sealed Baalke’s fate.
Not long after news broke, Baalke’s tenure in Jacksonville came to an end, per one prominent league insider.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter broke the news, then shared an official statement from Jaguars owner Shad Khan.
“Following several discussions with Trent Baalke this week, we both arrived at the conclusion that it is in our mutual best interests to respectfully separate, effective immediately. Trent leaves us with my deepest appreciation for his efforts over the past five seasons.
“Ethan Waugh will serve as interim general manager and play an important role, with others, as we continue the process of interviewing candidates to serve as our new head coach.
“I am deeply committed to building a winner here in Jacksonville and look forward to introducing a new head coach who will make that happen for our players and fans alike.”
CBS’ Sports Jordan Schultz then reported on what a blunder the move was to keep Baalke at the conclusion of the season was, even if the correct move for the organization was made eventually.
“Around the NFL, executives were stunned when Trent Baalke was retained after the season. Many called it malpractice and some laughed at the decision. It’s fair to wonder where the (Jaguars) would be if they had fired him two weeks ago.
“What was once an attractive HC job became highly undesirable with Baalke still in place. Better late than never, but this disaster was obvious to everyone from the start.”
Around the NFL, executives were stunned when Trent Baalke was retained after the season. Many called it malpractice and some laughed at the decision. It’s fair to wonder where the #Jaguars would be if they had fired him two weeks ago. What was once an attractive HC job became… https://t.co/sRQrhopYrP pic.twitter.com/0Wc4BzGy8P
— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) January 22, 2025
It’ll be interesting to see who Jacksonville can attrrack in the coaching market with Baalke’s absence.
