JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Jaguars owner Shad Khan's influence on the First Coast grew Sunday, as his franchise celebrated a playoff win for the first time in over a decade.
The Jaguars defeated the Buffalo Bills, 10-3, in front of a sold-out crowd at EverBank Field.
As Khan's legacy in Jacksonville strengthens, his footprint on the NFL becomes even more evident.
Commissioner Roger Goodell has seen Khan's impact on Jacksonville. He has also relied on Khan to help improve the league he oversees.
Prior to Sunday's game, Goodell met with local media to discuss the Jaguars' recent success. The NFL commissioner was quick to note Khan's emergence as a notable owner.
"Shad has this great optimism and this great enthusiasm and he believes in this community and he believes in the NFL and the Jaguars and he wants to make everything better," Goodell said.
The commissioner fielded questions on several topics but nearly every answer involving the Jaguars led to praise for Khan.
"He wants to make the team better," Goodell said.
"He knows he wants to win in this community and he's done that. He's been incredibly valuable to us on the league level [and] he's involved in a lot of different communities. There's not many things I don't want to speak to Shad about to get his perspective on. He's become an incredibly valuable owner in a short period of time."
Khan bought the Jaguars from franchise founder Wayne Weaver in 2012. Since taking over the team, Khan has largely improved the Jaguars' stadium, built entertainment venue Daily's Place and provided philanthropic support for several causes.
Along with his local endeavors, he has also made sure that he is involved with important league matters. Goodell noted that Khan is among the most influential owners in the NFL.
"Owners spend different amounts of time on league level matters," Goodell said.
"Shad is a chairman of a very important committee, the business ventures committee, and he's on several other committees. He's there at every meeting, he has a perspective, he works to make the league better as well as obviously the Jaguars because I think he realizes it makes the league stronger, it makes the Jaguars better and this community better. I think that's his whole emphasis."
Follow Mike Kaye on Twitter at @Mike_E_Kaye.
