Liam Coen Shares Hilarious Quote on Leaning on Running Game

After what he did for Baker Mayfield as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' offensive coordinator, there are high hopes that he can coax a peak year out of Lawrence, too. But he didn't earn the reputation of one of the NFL's top play-callers solely for his work in the passing game. He also worked miracles for the Bucs' rushing attack, coaching revelatory campaigns from Bucky Irving and Rachaad White.

He showed off his ingenious run schemes in the Jaguars' season opener against the Carolina Panthers, getting 200 total rushing yards from his team in Week 1. He'll be looking to continue that kind of success in his second game versus the Cincinnati Bengals. Jacksonville will need its running backs to take pressure off of Trevor Lawrence.

Why Liam Coen leans on the running game

The Jacksonville Jaguars had a unique outing in Head Coach Liam Coen's first game at the helm. Surprisingly, they led with their rushing attack, garnering 32 runs to 31 passing attempts, although some of those were scrambles from quarterback Trevor Lawrence.

Still, Coen's propensity to establish the ground game is an underdiscussed aspect of his offensive philosophy. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers had an extremely effective air attack last season, but they were also top 10 in rushing attempts and third in yards per carry in 2024. Jacksonville media asked the coach if he had any previous influences that made him value the ground game and physical play:

"Well, I threw the ball as a high school quarterback for my dad like 10 times a game, so it started young, where it was instilled for sure. Then, as you go throughout the process and the coaching profession, I was really fortunate in college, as a player, to play for [former UMass Head Coach] Don Brown, who was a defensive head coach, so in college, it was then also brought to me that way.

Then, obviously, when you go and work for [Rams Head Coach Sean McVay]... I guess a lot of people [think of him] as this Star Wars, the ball's going all over the place, but he was a tight ends coach in Washington before he became a coordinator. So, a lot of the run game, details, mindset, mentality, do come from that."

Many are expecting the Jaguars' Week 2 matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals to turn into a firefight between Lawrence and Joe Burrow, but Jacksonville will be hoping to establish the run, too. The more success they can find on the ground, the better their chances will be at pulling off the upset.

To keep up with the Jaguars' rushing attack throughout the season, follow us on X (Twitter) @JaguarsOnSI and @_John_Shipley.