Jags start coach search

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Jacksonville Jaguars are getting an earlier-than-usual start on their coaching search.

This time, owner Shad Khan doesn’t have his guy already lined up.

The Jaguars (2-13) will begin setting up and interviewing candidates this week — the NFL now allows teams to start the process during the final two weeks of the regular season — and Khan is expected to cast a wide net in search of his fifth head coach in the past decade.

Khan had preliminary discussions with (and essentially targeted) Urban Meyer a year before he fired Doug Marrone following the 2020 season. Khan never imagined Meyer, one of college football’s winningest coaches, would be such an NFL debacle.

Khan fired Meyer on Dec. 16, ending one of the most turbulent and toxic coaching tenures in league history, and clearly needs to completely tear down and rebuild a woeful franchise that’s endured double-digit losses nine times in his 10 years.

Jacksonville has dropped 34 of its past 39 games, including a 26-21 nail-biter at the Jets on Sunday.

“I’ve had a lot of failures; they were not on the sports page,” Khan said earlier this month. “You get up, like football, you dust yourself off and you have another go at it.”

The next go should include someone with NFL coaching experience. Former Philadelphia coach Doug Pederson, former Indianapolis and Detroit coach Jim Caldwell, former Minnesota coach and current Buffalo defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier are expected to get consideration.

Tampa Bay offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich, Green Bay offensive coordinator Nate Hackett, Kansas City offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy and former Atlanta coach and current Dallas defensive coordinator Dan Quinn also could be in the mix.