Sep 28, 2025; Santa Clara, California, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Liam Coen reacts from the sidelines during the second half against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

Why the Jaguars Offense Faces a Major Test vs. Chiefs Defense

Originally posted on Jacksonville Jaguars on SI
By Jared Feinberg | Last updated Oct 3, 2025 6:00 AM ET

It's a great time to be a Jacksonville Jaguars fan. The organization has done a complete 180 turn with its perception through the first four weeks of the season, with a 3-1 start guided by an elite defense that leads the NFL in takeaways. While the offense is a work in progress, there is still much to be excited about.

Monday night will present one of the biggest challenges in the early stages of the Liam Coen era as the Jaguars will host the surging 2-2 Kansas City Chiefs. Coen's offense may have found its rhythm against the San Francisco 49ers a week ago, but now faces another difficult defense led by the Chiefs' defensive coordinator, Steve Spagnuolo, and star defensive lineman, Chris Jones.

Coen shares the challenges of the Chiefs defense

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Coen is one of the most well-regarded play-callers in the NFL with his run game creativity and ability to put his passing game in positions to succeed. That aspect faces a taller task against Kansas City and the man they call "Spags." Coen said that the Chiefs can come from "anywhere and everywhere" with their unique pressures, rotations, and coverage disguises.

"[Spaguolo] definitely puts a lot of pressure on you as an offense, as a play caller, your quarterback," Coen explained. "To be able to see it pre-snap, what's the picture going to be post-snap, zero checks. You got to be zero ready at all times, and it could be back-to-back to back."

When the Tampa Bay Buccaneers faced the Chiefs last year in the regular season in an overtime thriller, Coen said Spagnuolo "zeroed him" a few times last year.

"A lot of respect for the position that he puts his players in, the attacking mindset that they play with. It's a great opportunity for us this week."

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One of those players is Jones, one of the top defensive linemen in the sport. Coen calls him a "game wrecker type player," who can take over a football game from his skill set and intangibles alone.

"The size obviously, the length, the ability to quick swim you, to push the middle pocket," Coen said. "Then he lines up at [defensive] end at times in some known passing situations. So, it's going to take a village, like that's kind of what we've been talking about, really with these rushers."

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Aware of the challenges Jones presents for an NFL offense, Coen explains that it will take all of his unit to keep him at bay.

"It's not just one guy, one matchup, it's all of us have a hand in it in terms of being able to chip, do all the little things you have to, to take care of a guy like that, that can make a huge impact," Coen said.

This article first appeared on Jacksonville Jaguars on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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