Jaguars officially hire Jay Gruden as offensive coordinator

Only nine days since the Jaguars mutually parted ways with former offensive coordinator John DeFilippo, the team and head coach Doug Marrone have named former Washington head coach Jay Gruden as their offensive coordinator, the team announced in a statement this morning.

Gruden is set to become the third offensive coordinator under Marrone since he was hired in 2017. This will also be the third-consecutive season in which an offensive coordinator change has been made. Nathaniel Hackett, DeFilippo, and now Gruden have taken over the team’s offense since 2018.

Prior to being named the head coach in Washington, Gruden was instrumental in his role as the Cincinnati Bengals offensive coordinator, successfully ushering in Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton into good standing as the team’s franchise quarterback for the past several seasons.

Under Gruden, Dalton posted career highs in passing yards and touchdowns during the offensive coordinator’s final season (2013), with 4,293 passing yards and 33 touchdowns.

Gruden, the younger brother of Oakland Raiders head coach Jon Gruden, got his first start in the NFL in 2002 as an offensive assistant under the Jon Gruden-led Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Jay Gruden would leave that role after his brother was fired in 2008. For the next several years Jay coached in the Arena Football League, before making his way back to the NFL in 2011.

Prior to becoming the head coach in Washington, Gruden was a successful offensive coordinator with the Cincinnati Bengals, ranking fourth in total offense in 2013 — 10th in offensive yards —, his final year as the team’s offensive coordinator.

At the time, this was one of the most successful turnarounds in the NFL as the struggling Bengals failed to produce much on offense in previous seasons, ranking 20th, 24th, and 32nd in the previous three seasons without Gruden calling the shots.

In his most successful head-coaching season, 2016, Gruden had the Redskins offensive humming, ranking ninth in total offense, 12th in points, and second in passing offense.

The Jaguars will hope a new offensive mind in the room for the 2020 season will successfully usher the team out of inconsistency, especially at the quarterback position. Pairing Gardner Minshew II with a young and ever-evolving offensive coordinator will do wonders for the now-second year player’s development for the future.

What remains clear is the Jaguars will not be catering the team’s offense with only veteran quarterback Nick Foles in mind. A west coast offense much better suits Minshew II than his veteran counterpart. With an emphasis on down-field vertical passing using play action, it seems like a match made in heaven for Minshew II.

Marrone said “We’ll get to work on that right away” on the quarterback coach situation.