Liam Coen’s Contract and Salary: How Much Is the Jaguars’ Head Coach Getting Paid?

In a dramatic turn of events at the end of the 2024 regular season, Liam Coen signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars to become the team’s next head coach. He had agreed to extend his contract as the offensive coordinator of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers earlier, but he changed his decision at the last moment.

If Coen had extended with the Bucs, he would have reportedly become the highest-paid offensive coordinator in the NFL. With the Jaguars, how much is he earning in 2025? Let’s find out.

Liam Coen’s Contract and Salary

According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, Coen’s five-year contract with the Jaguars pays him an average of $12 million per year; this is more than double what he would have earned as the highest-paid offensive coordinator. ESPN reported that the agreement between the Bucs and Coen was about $4-5 million per year.

This is a significant pay rise for Coen, and it makes him the 10th-highest-paid head coach in the NFL in his first assignment, though this is estimated as coaching contracts are not often made public. Jaguars owner Shahid Khan personally interviewed Coen, and he expected a similar turnaround for Jacksonville as he produced in Tampa, Fla.

Coen did not disappoint in his first season with the Jaguars as he led the team to a 12-5 record and won the AFC South division.

It was Coen’s first season in Tampa Bay, and he immediately led one of the best offenses in the NFL. The Bucs ranked third in PFSN’s Offense Impact Metric, a huge leap from the previous year’s 22nd-place ranking.

Under Coen’s coaching, Baker Mayfield posted one of the best seasons in Buccaneers history and ranked seventh in PFSN’s QB Impact Metric (after ranking 13th in 2023) and eighth in EPA per play (after ranking 14th in 2023). Mayfield and the Bucs offense produced at elite levels despite missing Chris Godwin for the final 10 games of the regular season and Mike Evans missing three.

One key development to Mayfield’s sensational season was his ability to avoid pressure. In 2023, Mayfield was pressured on 34% of his dropbacks and had the fifth-deepest aDOT (8.6 air yards).

His tendency to hunt for big plays led to some explosive games and caused him to invite more pressure. In 2024, Mayfield was pressured on 24% of his dropbacks, the third-lowest. His willingness to get the ball out of his hands earlier was a big part of that.

Mayfield’s aDOT dropped from the fifth-deepest to the seventh-shortest (6.9 air yards). Could Trevor Lawrence be the next Mayfield? Lawrence has seen his QB+ grade decline in three consecutive seasons (79.5 in 2022, 67.1 in 2023, and 64.5 in 2024), failing to succeed despite an increased level of aggression.

What helped Mayfield succeed in 2024? Under Coen’s watch, his aDOT was dialed back by 18.6%, and he thrived on those short passes (under 10 air yards). Before working with Mayfield in Tampa, Coen did a terrific job developing Will Levis on the Kentucky Wildcats. Although Levis hasn’t worked out in the NFL, he took a huge step in 2021 under Coen’s tutelage.

Jacksonville Jaguars’ Stats and Insights for Wild Card Round

Team: Since acquiring Jakobi Meyers, Jacksonville is 8-1 and is averaging 33.1 points per game, which is second-best in the NFL since Week 10. The Jaguars’ +146 point differential in that stretch leads the NFL.

Playoffs: Jacksonville made the playoffs four times in the franchise’s first five years. This is the fifth postseason appearance in the last 26 seasons.

QB: Trevor Lawrence’s first postseason start got off to a terrible start when he threw four interceptions on the team’s first six drives, and the Jaguars fell behind 27-0. He finished completing 23 of 29 passes for 253 yards and four touchdown passes as Jacksonville rallied to defeat the Chargers, 31-30.

OFF: Trevor Lawrence has 20 touchdowns and six interceptions with 8.1 yards per pass attempt in nine games since Jakobi Meyers arrived. He had nine touchdowns with six interceptions with 6.3 yards per attempt before Meyers joined the team.

DEF: During the current eight-game win streak, Jacksonville had a DEFi in the weekly top 12 each week. In the five games, the Jaguars ranked 23rd or lower four out of five weeks.