Tom Coughlin fired by Jaguars

The Jacksonville Jaguars have made the long-overdue move to part ways with executive vice president Tom Coughlin.

Owner Shad Khan informed Coughlin Wednesday evening that he had been fired, effective immediately.

Jaguars' owner Shad Khan informed Tom Coughlin that he was being relieved of his duties as Executive Vice President of Football Operations of the Jacksonville Jaguars, effective this evening. — Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 19, 2019

According to ESPN’s Field Yates, the team’s recent grievance issues — including an NFLPA warning to players to carefully consider whether they’d want to play there — may have hastened Coughlin’s departure.

An important note here: Shad Khan decided earlier this fall that he was planning to relieve Coughlin of his duties after the season but reconsidered the timeline in recent days. It would seem the recent case won by the NFLPA against the Jaguars was a factor. https://t.co/Sx0Ivh8KI3 — Field Yates (@FieldYates) December 19, 2019

Notably, Coughlin was fired even though Pro Football Talk reports he planned to retire at the end of the season.

Coughlin’s departure has been rumored for quite a while. While the Jaguars made it to the AFC Championship in his first season running the organization, the 2018 and 2019 seasons have been disasters. The team’s acquisition of Nick Foles has not paid off, and aforementioned grievances against the organization have been a significant problem, including for the team’s starting running back. Ultimately, the lack of success combined with the off-field drama made it clear that Coughlin couldn’t continue.

The question now is whether the Jaguars will pursue further changes, as rumor has indicated they might. This may well be the first firing of a busy offseason.