The Jacksonville Jaguars are in trouble, with a once-highly-anticipated season off to an 0-3 start sparking rumors of an organizational shake-up that could include firing head coach Doug Pederson.
Rumor has it that Bill Belichick is the favorite to be the solution to the Jaguars coaching woes, so today The Football Court comes together to debate whether this is a good idea or not, our debate series where we try to answer some of football's biggest questions, whether we personally agree with them or not.
The Jaguars should definitely hire Bill Belichick – James Deiter
Folks, there's no need to waste any court time debating Bill Belichick's career history. We all know he is the greatest coach in football history, someone who is always able to get the best out of the players available to him.
Instead, I argue that Bill Belichick should be named head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars for two reasons.
- Available coaches
- A history of failure
To those who say Belichick is a bad choice, I ask: “Who's better?” The past two years have seen a sharp decline in the pool of talented head coaching candidates, leaving very few available to move up from coordinator to coach in 2025. Of course, there's hope for someone like Detroit's Ben Johnson or Aaron Glenn, but both seem (at least for now) content to wait for the right coordinator position to open up. Is Jacksonville, with Trent Baalke at the helm, the right place for a young head coach looking to make a name for himself? Absolutely not.
If they don't hire Belichick and the two most promising coordinators are off the market, they'll be in a tight spot. Would Mike McCarthy be better off being fired by Dallas? Is Steve Spagnuolo going to leave or will he be Andy Reid's successor? After all, this is not a buyer's market for coaches, and promising coaches are waiting to find the right landing spot rather than jumping at the first position that becomes available.
Second, the history when it comes to coordinators turning into coaches in Jacksonville is, well, terrible. Look at the list of talented coordinators who have become Jaguars head coaches and tell me if this is really the right path to take. Both Mike Mularkey and Gus Bradley were widely welcomed hires, but the results were terrible.
To make this happen, they need someone who can replace Trevor Lawrence and win. There's no reason to think Belichick can't do that. Plus, he can get the talent out of his players better than anyone else. It may not be a long-term solution, but for now, it's the only solution.
Bill Belichick may be the greatest of all time, but he may not be the answer — Mark Schofield
Judge Acosta, ladies and gentlemen, and honored guests, I have learned many things through my years of practice, both in this jurisdiction and in other jurisdictions: never interrupt a quarterback argument in Chicago; always stand when speaking before a judge; and this.
Your most enthusiastic supporters are often the people you least expect.
I speak to you as a longtime New England Patriots fan, someone who sat in front of the TV during Super Bowl XX with my heart almost breaking, someone who lived through two different dynasties that Bill Belichick built in large part, and someone who believes Belichick is, without a doubt, one of the greatest coaches of all time. Not just in football, but as a coach.
But Bill Belichick isn't the answer in Jacksonville.
The Jaguars' problems run much deeper than one head coach, and no matter how great Belichick is and how capable he still is in the NFL, he can't singlehandedly solve Jacksonville's woes.
Big changes are needed beyond just the coach. Trent Baalke has made some big decisions for this franchise and certainly must shoulder some of the blame in this situation. The front office needs new decision makers, but can Belichick find someone he will or should listen to?
Or is the idea to hand over all decision-making to Belichick?
Belichick is impeccable as a head coach, but if you ask any Patriots fan, they might have some questions about him as a general manager. Consider this little quip from Albert Breer: MMQB:
“Tony Khan has a very strong relationship with Bill Belichick, Shad's son. It was largely on Bill Belichick's advice that he hired Doug Marrone in 2017 and took away his interim coaching position, so Bill has had the ear and ear of the owners there for a while now.”
Marrone compiled a 23-43 record during his time in Jacksonville and lost to Belichick in the AFC Championship Game.
Once again, Belichick will head straight to Canton. As early as 2026 That violates the Hall of Fame selection rules, but Jacksonville's problems go beyond its head coach and bigger changes are needed.
Belichick could very well be the coach again, but his fit in Jacksonville wouldn't be what's best for him or the team, given what the organization is looking for outside of a head coach.
Verdict — JP Acosta
I would like to thank Attorneys Scofield and Deiter for their very persuasive arguments. I have seen many things as a fan of the Jaguars franchise that have caused me eternal pain and fear. Most notably, owner Shad Khan's attempt to embrace a relic of the past. Doug Marrone Was He was the Jaguars' assistant head coach and offensive line coach. Hiring him was easy. He was someone Khan knew, was on the team, wasn't going to change much, and Khan could stay hands-off as owner while everyone else did their thing. But Marrone was 15-17 as the former head coach of the Buffalo Bills, and the way he ended it there was disrespectful, to say the least. Urban Meyer Was A well-respected college football coach with Florida ties. What Khan wanted was a big name, a new era of Jaguars football with a Florida native at the helm. Never mind that he had zero NFL coaching experience and that the reason he quit coaching was because it nearly killed him. This was the deal… and it didn't. Doug Pederson Was Super Bowl winning coach of the Philadelphia Eagles. An offensive master at getting the best out of his QB as long as he was there. Just don't look at how his Eagles tenure ended.
The words I want you to pay attention to here are WasKhan is too busy living in the past, watching the success of the players he saw on TV and in his room and saying “I want that,” to move forward into a new era in the NFL. The next hire the Jaguars make is their most important one because nothing is easy. They don't have a ton of cap space and it's an expensive QB who may break down due to circumstances. you With him, the fanbase is bringing back the clown nose. The first step here is to fire Trent Baalke. No matter what, Baalke can't get away with a roster this bad. Second, The Jaguars shouldn't hire Bill Belichick.As Attorney Scofield said:
I love Belichick as a coach. What he's done defensively has revolutionized the game in every aspect. But this team needs to move. forwardWe can't continue to look back at past successes and automatically assume they will happen in Jacksonville. Coordinators like Arizona's Drew Petzing come to mind as someone who could really thrive in Jacksonville, but Belichick brings success and standards, but remember I said the same about Pederson. I'm also wary of Belichick gaining complete control of the roster as GM with no one outside of Belichick's realm to have a check or say in.
If Belichick wants to coach again, he should, but Jacksonville is not the right place for him.
