
The Jacksonville Jaguars are parting ways with general manager Trent Baalke after four seasons, the organization announced on Wednesday.
The news comes following the decision by Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Liam Coen to decline the Jags HC job and opt to stay in Tampa.
“Following several discussions with Trent Baalke this week, we both arrived at the conclusion that it is in our mutual best interests to respectfully separate, effective immediately. Trent leaves us with my deepest appreciation for his efforts over the past five seasons,” Khan said in a statement. “Ethan Waugh will serve as interim general manager and play an important role, with others, as we continue the process of interviewing candidates to serve as our new head coach. I am deeply committed to building a winner here in Jacksonville and look forward to introducing a new head coach who will make that happen for our players and fans alike.”
Baalke has been with the Jaguars for the last four seasons. The team reached the playoffs just once under his watch, and they are fresh off a 4-13 campaign. Baalke was hired ahead of the 2021 campaign, which saw coach Urban Meyer fired after less than a year. The team then fired head coach Doug Pederson earlier this month. In total, Baalke compiled a 25-43 record in Jacksonville. The job marked his second as a general manager in the league, following a six-year run with the San Francisco 49ers — who reached a Super Bowl under his watch.
When the Jaguars fired Pederson at the end of the regular season, Khan said that he wasn’t going to fire Baalke too. He didn’t want to completely overhaul the franchise, he said, as doing so would be “like shooting yourself in the foot.”
But that all changed as the Jags coaching search has been not going well, with the top candidates Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn opting to take jobs elsewhere. It was clear Baalke’s presence with the organization turned away a lot of quality candidates.