The Jacksonville Jaguars have had four full-time coaches dating back to 2020, so they're not necessarily a model of stability. That said, you could make the case that they're doing better than the rival Tennessee Titans.
The Titans chose to part ways with Mike Vrabel in 2024 and hired Brian Callahan to replace him. However, they already ousted Callahan after winning just four games in 23. Tennessee is already searching for a suggestion, and a team reporter just brougth up a suggestion that will make Jags fans raise their eyebrows.
Former Jaguars HC Doug Pederson was brought up as an option for the Titans
Titans analyst Jared Stillman brought up Doug Pederson as a legitimate candidate to fill Tennessee's opening at head coach, noting that he got the most out of Nick Foles when the Philadelphia Eagles in 2017.
"Doug Pederson, the former Philadelphia head coach that won a Super Bowl the former Jacksonville head coach. And there's a couple of things here with Doug Pederson," Stillman said. "First off, he was the Chiefs offensive coordinator for 2013 to 2015. Doug Pederson was the first Andy Reid right-hand man. He was Andy's right-hand man in Philadelphia, and he was Andy's right-hand man at the beginning in Kansas City."
Stillman continued, "And the only reason he didn't stay Andy's right-hand man is because Jeffrey Lurie, after realizing that Chip Kelly was a mistake, reinstated Howie Roseman as the general manager, and they wanted a head coach they trusted, and that was Andy's right-hand man, because Andy had been there for so long. So they hired Doug Pederson. "
"We all know Doug Peterson. Went to Philadelphia. We all know Doug Peterson won a Super Bowl with Nick Foles, and then we all know we went to Jacksonville, won the division the last game of the year against the Titans, and then they completely fell apart."
Stillman goes on to say that Titans Mike Borganzi knows Pederson from his time with the Kansas City Chiefs, and that could make him an option in spite of how things ended with the Jags and Philadelphia.
The fact that Pederson won the Super Bowl in Philly still resonates across the NFL landscape, and the Borgonzi connection cannot be overlooked, as the two spent a handful of years together in Kansas City. When you add it all up, Stillman's suggestion isn't that far-fetched.
Heck, Turron Davenport, who covers the Titans for ESPN, caught wind of the proposal and gave his seal of approval.
This is actually not a bad idea. https://t.co/hOtdm0MOlI
— TURRON DAVENPORT (@TDavenport_NFL) November 8, 2025
Aside from the Borgonzi connection, the Titans also make sense because they have a young quarterback in Cam Ward, and Pederson could help him hit his stride based on his past work with signal-callers dating back to the Chiefs.
The Jaguars wouldn't mind seeing Doug Pederson go to the Titans
Make no mistake, Doug Pederson helped the Jaguars heal from the Urban Meyer debacle, and winning the Super Bowl is an achievement nobody will take away from him. That said, there's a reason he got kicked to the curb.
Pederson was involved in Trevor Lawrence's development early on but later delegated the task, along with most responsibilities on offense, to right-hand man Press Taylor. That wouldn't have been an issue if they had had success, but that wasn't the case. The Jaguars struggled, and instead of taking the reins, Pederson doubled down on the decision to keep Taylor at the helm of the offense.
Things didn't get much better on defense. Pederson fired Mike Caldwell after two seasons because he wasn't able to get the most out of the defense. He brought in Ryan Nelson to take his place, but things only got worse, as the mustachioed coordinator rubbed players the wrong way with his arrogant demeanor.
By 2024, the Jaguars were a mess, and Pederson threw players under the bus to defend Taylor. To have an idea of how bad things got, he got a dreadful score in the survey the NFLPA (the players' union) put together.
Now, Doug Pederson could ultimately garner interest in the next hiring cycle, and the Titans could turn out to be a legitimate landing spot for him. If that's the case, the rivalry with the Jaguars will only get more interesting.