JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — After another dismal season, Jaguars owner Shad Khan has to decide whether or not head coach Doug Marrone is the man who can make the Jaguars winners again. The Jaguars finished the season 6-10, closing out 2019 with a solid win over AFC South division rival Indianapolis Sunday at home.
After the game, Khan was seen high fiving Marrone as he headed to the locker room. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Khan is scheduled to meet with Marrone Tuesday morning.
Marrone contradicted ESPN reports he would be dismissed after the game against the Colts.
“We’ve had a plan for a while. Obviously, the stuff comes out yesterday, which is kind of joke because the one thing I know about Shad and Tony is that we’ve had communication and it would come from them. It’s not going to come from somewhere out in the media, especially if it’s going to come from someone from a national standpoint.”
Marrone said the report “didn’t phase” him.
“What I tried to do is make sure the players are focused on what they needed to do. We’re in a league where, if you don’t play well, there are going to be a lot of things out there about a lot of us.,” he said. “For weeks now, it’s always been, ‘Hey, exit interviews, meeting during the week, coming up with a plan,’ and I think Shad and Tony are going to look and see if that’s the right plan and make the best decision.”
Marrone and Khan will sit down to discuss the outlook for the franchise going forward. The question is whether or not they share the same vision. Marrone said he doesn’t know if Sunday’s win over the Colts will have any impact on the future.
“The one thing I will say is Shad and Tony are really great owners. The communication that we’ve had, even though it’s not public, we’ve had a lot of communication,” he said. “They want to do the best job they can for our fans and for the city, for our sponsors, for everyone in the building. I know, for me, I appreciate that and thank them.”
Still, Marrone said the season has been “disappointing.”
“I know in my heart that I can take this team to better roads, but again, that’s not my decision,” he said.
During his three years as the Jaguars head coach Marrone is 22-28, but he’s only won eight of the last 28 games. He led the Jaguars to the 2017 AFC South Division title and was one win away from the Jaguars reaching the Super Bowl for the first time in the franchise’s history. However, with back to back losing seasons, the fan base is calling for sweeping changes.
Khan has already fired Tom Coughlin, who was the executive vice president of football operations, when there was two weeks remaining in the regular season. The question remains: will Marrone be next. And it’s not clear if General Manager David Caldwell will be back in 2020 either.