A mere 12 months ago, the Jacksonville Jaguars were fresh off an anemic 3-13 season. A season that saw the worst football team in Florida win a total of two home games and post a final scoring differential of -82. Impending talk of relocation to a more popular city continued for a franchise 10 years removed from a winning season and playoff birth. Blake Bortles, the once-promising young quarterback and third-overall pick from the University of Central Florida in 2014 was all but considered a bust and on his way out. His promising 4,400-yard, 35-touchdown sophomore year campaign was a distant memory following a paltry 23-16 touchdown-interception ratio and 42.8 quarterback rating (QBR) in 2016. Head coach Gus Bradley didn’t even make it to week 17.
In four days, that same franchise will play Tom Brady and the New England Patriots for a spot in the Super Bowl.
This isn’t simply an ode to the feel-good story of the 2017 season. This is a message to all of the perpetually struggling franchises in the NFL — Cleveland, Tampa Bay, Cincinnati — or those looking to get back on top — Dallas, New York Giants, Denver. Listen to the tale of the miraculous Jaguars. A team that won three games a year ago is 60 minutes from a Super Bowl appearance! The big question: How did they do it?
More than anything, credit owner Shahid Khan. Credit Khan for doing what most owners are too stubborn or ignorant to do themselves, and admit he needed to surround himself with higher football IQ rather than do everything himself *cough* Jerry Jones *cough.* Khan made his billions in the auto parts industry, so he is far from a football aficionado. However, he did all he could to change the Jaguars narrative as a cellar-dweller in the standings after purchasing the team in 2011. He invested $3 million to create what became the league’s most luxurious locker room, spent another $63 million on the world’s largest HD LED video boards and oversaw the unveiling of a new, fierce logo (New York Times, USA Today). Though Khan’s measures fueled a strong effort to rebrand and reinvent the image of the Jacksonville Jaguars, the team’s 17 total wins in the five years since his purchase showed there was much more to do. Expensive, world-class facilities wouldn’t aid changing the Jags reputation if they didn’t serve a winning team.
To Khan, it appeared things were on the right track after a stellar 2016 draft.
General manager Dave Caldwell selected three prolific defensive assets in cornerback Jalen Ramsey, linebacker Myles Jack and defensive end Yannick Ngakoue with his first three picks, respectively. Jack was a solid defensive starter, Ngakoue set the team record for sacks by a rookie, and Ramsey played like a Pro-Bowler and began cementing himself among the best in the game at his position.
The blueprint appeared set for the Jaguars to return to relevance for the first time since 2007. However, things still didn’t click in 2016 as the Jaguars won only three games and saw Bortles regress significantly as a quarterback.
While Caldwell had a stellar 2016 draft, decisions like passing on Todd Gurley and Melvin Gordon in 2015 only to take TJ Yeldon over David Johnson highlighted his inability to supply the team with a bell-cow running back. In addition, Bradley, Caldwell’s head coach of choice, lost 48 games in less than four-years time. It appeared as if the Jaguars were destined to continue riding the carousel of atrocity for years to come.
Enter Tom Coughlin.
Last offseason, Khan gave Coughlin, the franchise’s inaugural coach and a two-time Super Bowl champion with the New York Giants, full control and final say over all football matters as executive vice president of football operations. Instantly, Coughlin made an impact, signing defensive end Calais Campbell, cornerback A.J. Bouye and safety Barry Church while removing the interim tag from Doug Maronne and naming him full time head coach. With these savvy acquisitions, the Jaguars defense rocketed from bottom 10 to top two in one season. Despite losing Pro-Bowl wide receiver Allen Robinson early in the 2017 season, the Jaguars offense flipped from bottom to top 10 thanks in part to the number-four overall pick, running back Leonard Fournette, and a new offensive philosophy implemented by Maronne.
In one offseason, Coughlin successfully analyzed the team and delivered the missing pieces for a playoff contender. Coughlin saw a talented yet wildly erratic and inconsistent quarterback in Blake Bortles and surrounded him with the pieces needed to make a player of his nature the quarterback of a successful team. A tenacious, smothering defense and elite running back have the Jaguars on the cusp of greatness nobody saw coming.
The biggest lesson to be learned is Khan knew things weren’t going the way he wanted because he didn’t have the right people making the decisions. Rather than arrogantly proclaiming he knew how to solve the myriad of problems the Jaguars faced and attempting to sign the players and higher the coach himself, he brought in a man who has succeeded and thrived at the highest level and is now reaping the rewards as a proud winning owner.
Yes, it takes some good fortune to strike gold as many times as the Jaguars have in recent years. But Khan put Jacksonville in the best position to do so by bringing in one of the best in the game. It would be wise for owners like Bengals’ Mike Brown and Cowboys’ Jerry Jones, who insist they know what’s best for their teams but clearly do not given their performances, to learn from Khan and admit they need to bring in help. After all, the Jaguars have won as many playoff games in eight days as Dallas and Cincinnati have combined in the past 20 years.
There is no shame in admitting you need help. Just ask Shahid Khan.
Statistics from NFL.com and ESPN.com.
Contact Zach Naidu at znaidu ‘at’ stanford.edu.