Who should be the Jacksonville Jaguars’ next head coach?
“Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.” That was a common refrain from Gomer Pyle on the Andy Griffith Show. Jacksonville Jaguars owner, Shad Khan has been fooled twice and had to fire his last two coaches before the end of their tenure.
Vowing to avoid being fooled another time, Khan has started the process of interviewing possible candidates for the head coaching position. With a fan base thirsting for a winning team, the critical questions to be asked are: How can vertical alignment be used to better assess and prepare for hiring the next Jacksonville Jaguars’ head coach? Who should be the next Jacksonville Jaguars’ head coach?
In education, one of the best strategies to improve student performance is through vertical alignment, where there are clear linkages among the state agency, school district, high, middle and elementary schools. Vertical alignment ensures what is being taught and tested in the classroom aligns with the state standards and assessments. It articulates the logical, consistent order for teaching the standards-based content at each grade or course level, which allows teachers to focus on building skills and knowledge while reducing the need for excess review and repetition.
Just as in education, it is imperative that there is clear alignment from the National Football League (NFL), owners, general counsel, general managers, head coaches, assistant coaches and players about the total operation of the NFL organization. This means there should be consistency in handling policies such as the Rooney Rule, COVID-19 vaccinations, workplace bullying and contract negotiations. Regarding contract negotiations, the Jaguars have loss too many talented players such as Jalen Ramsey, Yannick Ngakoue, Calais Campbell and Allen Robinson due to unsuccessful contract negotiations. When less talented players receive successful contract negotiations or remain on the team, this can contribute to a hostile environment.
Given another chance to hire the next Jaguars head coach, Khan’s decision should be to find a coach that has the right experiences and temperament to align and coalesce a winning team. Khan’s search should consider all candidates, including those who fall under the Rooney Rule. This NFL policy requires league teams to interview ethnic-minority candidates for head coaching and senior football operations jobs. Some noteworthy minority candidates for the head coaching job in Jacksonville are Byron Leftwich, offensive coordinator for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers; Eric Bieniemy, offensive coordinator for the Kansas City Chiefs; and Jim Caldwell, former head coach for the Indianapolis Colts and Detroit Lions. All of these strong and remarkable candidates have been affiliated with winning a Super Bowl under their coaching and leadership experience.
Based on the pool of qualified candidates and the essential needs of the Jaguars’ organization, Khan’s decision should be to hire an outstanding minority candidate for the head coaching job who can work cooperatively with Trevor Lawrence to help him develop and become a sensational quarterback in the NFL. The candidate should be someone who is mature, inspirational, passionate, and smart. The candidate should be a player centered coach who demonstrates the mindset, humility and ability to revamp and revitalize the Jacksonville Jaguars. The candidate should have a passion for winning and the charisma to be trusted and respected by players, managers, owners and the community of Jacksonville. The candidate should also understand the NFL culture and have the ability to attract and retain good football players from a wide range of small and big universities through the draft and free agency.
Dr. Ronald Holmes is the author of 24 books and publisher of “The Holmes Education Post,” an education focused Internet newspaper. Holmes is a former teacher, school administrator, test developer and district superintendent. He has written children’s books on the coronavirus, solar system, flowers, colors, careers, continents, animals, birds and school bullying. His adult books focus on hazing, workplace bullying, bipolar disorder, issues in education and completing the dissertation.
