Jaguars' Liam Coen Reflects on Kirk, Engram Departures

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — The Jacksonville Jaguars' offense is going through some bitter change this offseason, but new head coach Liam Coen is confident in his team's ability to make tough decisions.

Tough decisions is exactly how one would describe a pair of Coen's and general manager James Gladstone's first major moves leading the Jaguars' regime.

Ahead of free agency, the Jaguars opted to move on from two former building blocks in Christian Kirk and Evan Engram. Kirk was traded to the Houston Texans, while Engram was released and has since signed with the Denver Broncos.

For three years, the duo were two of the most important Jaguars on and off the field. With their departures goes plenty of big plays, memories and, most importantly, support for Trevor Lawrence.

“It’s always hard letting go of good football players. I have a ton of respect for both of those guys. They’ve done some really good things here. Those were not easy decisions. Ultimately, you hate to let go of good football players, but production, right? Those guys did have a good amount of targets, receptions, some critical plays in different moments of different years," Coen said on Monday.

Coen, however, wants it to be clear the Jaguars are moving forward in a positive manner. The Jaguars saw Brian Thomas Jr. come alive as one of the NFL's top receivers last season, while Coen appears to be a fan of some of the depth at receiver with Parker Washington.

"So, there’s some chemistry, some camaraderie there I’m sure that we have to continue to work on, but I think you saw what BT and Trevor were able to do last year, and then obviously with some of the guys like [WR] Parker Washington had a great connection, and you start to see some of these guys evolve," Coen said.

"We’re like, okay, this allows us to do some different things within our roster structure and feel confident where it’s going moving forward.”

It may not have been a popular move, but sometimes the right moves rarely are. It was certainly a tough one to make, but the Jaguars and Coen are looking ahead with eyes on the future.

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