{"id":221960,"date":"2025-07-20T12:16:12","date_gmt":"2025-07-20T12:16:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/221960\/"},"modified":"2025-07-20T12:16:12","modified_gmt":"2025-07-20T12:16:12","slug":"jaguars-legend-demands-more-from-outperforming-40m-star-as-liam-coen-faces-burning-questions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/221960\/","title":{"rendered":"Jaguars Legend Demands More From Outperforming $40M Star as Liam Coen Faces Burning Questions"},"content":{"rendered":"

That electric, almost mythical charge in the air during the Jaguars<\/a>\u2019 improbable \u201996 run to the AFC title game? That feeling of a young franchise finding its \u2018snarling identity\u2019? Fast forward nearly three decades, and a familiar, gravelly voice from those early glory days is tapping the mic, suggesting it\u2019s time to rediscover Trevor Lawrence\u2019s spark, starting with the guy protecting the crown jewel.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m counting on Walker Little to step it up to have a better year,\u201d declared Tom McManus<\/a>, the embodiment of those mid-90s grinders. He isn\u2019t holding back on expectations from $40.5 million left tackle Walker Little. \u201cI know a lot of you give him, uh, you know, high grades\u2026I think he\u2019s, you know, okay.\u201d The pause hung heavy, a veteran linebacker sizing up a gap in the line. \u201cThink he needs to be better than okay.\u201d<\/p>\n

McManus wasn\u2019t just nitpicking PFF\u2019s solid-but-not-elite 72.8 overall grade for Little from 2024. He was zeroing in on the intangibles \u2013 the very soul of trench warfare, protecting Trevor Lawrence<\/a>. Lawrence, for all his golden-arm talent, spent too much of last season under siege. His pressure-to-sack rate ballooned to 20.0% (17th in NFL), a worrying trend climbing yearly. When blitzed? His passer rating plummeted to a league-worst 71.17. Dropbacks lasting over three seconds were a disaster zone, ending in sacks or picks a staggering 25% of the time. \u201cOkay\u201d protection, as McManus framed it, simply fuels those defensive feeding frenzies.<\/p>\n

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But McManus, ever the locker-room philosopher, sees the remedy brewing. It\u2019s not just about Little unlocking a nastier streak, though he emphatically stated, \u201cI tell you what, he\u2019s got all the physical tools to do it. He\u2019s big\u2026fast\u2026quick\u2026athletic\u2026flexible. Just needs the right temperament.\u201d The real magic, McManus believes, comes from the environment. \u201cAnd, again, I think it\u2019s going to come through. It, you know, it usually comes from other players.\u201d Enter the new regime\u2019s masterstroke: GM James Gladstone and Head Coach Liam Coen are deliberately importing enforcers. Think less X\u2019s and O\u2019s, more attitude transplants.<\/p>\n

\u201cCoaches bring in those players to shake that whole thing up,\u201d McManus explained, his voice gaining the fervor of a pre-game hype man, \u201cbecause you want those kind of players in your locker room, right? You want those players that say, \u2018Hey, man, we got to be real physical today. Come up and thump somebody.\u2019\u201d This is the antidote to last year, when the defensive unit often outshone the offense. It\u2019s about building a culture where not meeting that physical standard feels alien.<\/p>\n

Coen\u2019s conundrum: The RB room pressure cooker<\/p>\n

While McManus scrutinizes the trenches, Coen walks into camp facing his own high-stakes puzzle: a running back room simmering with talent and tension. Travis Etienne ($40M extension potential looming), Tank Bigsby, and rookie Bhayshul Tuten form a triumvirate separated by mere inches and pounds, but possessing distinct, explosive skills. This isn\u2019t just depth; it\u2019s one of the league\u2019s five most intriguing position battles.<\/p>\n

The burning questions for Coen are real:<\/p>\n

Who takes the first snap? That initial rep in camp is a subtle but potent endorsement. Does it go to the established, albeit sometimes inconsistent, Etienne? Or the surging Bigsby, who seized his chance when Etienne\u2019s shoulder faltered last year? Bigsby didn\u2019t just fill in; he outperformed down the stretch. As ESPN\u2019s Ben Solak noted: \u201cfrom Weeks 5\u201318\u2026 Bigsby outrushed Etienne 147\u2013103\u201d with a superior EPA per rush (0.01 vs. -0.13) and yards after contact (2.33 vs. 1.36). That momentum is tangible.<\/p>\n

How does Coen\u2019s scheme reshape the roles? Coen\u2019s Buccaneers<\/a> were a rare top-5 unit in both rushing and passing last year, masterfully deploying a committee of Rachaad White and rookie Bucky Irving. His balanced, lead-protecting offense in Tampa averaged 483 carries \u2013 significantly more than Doug Pederson\u2019s Jags (438). Solak poses the obvious: \u201cWhy not just play Etienne and Bigsby in a committee?\u201d Enter Tuten. The 4th-round dynamo, boasting a 4.32-second 40-yard dash and a nation-leading 0.34 missed tackles forced per attempt at Virginia Tech, is the electrifying wild card. \u201cI\u2019m fairly certain Tuten will play a solid role,\u201d Solak stated, acknowledging the rookie\u2019s game-breaking potential. But reality bites: \u201cThere aren\u2019t enough touches to feed three backs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Who becomes the odd man out? This is the billion-dollar question simmering beneath the Florida sun. Coen\u2019s preference for a two-back system and Tuten\u2019s undeniable juice create a logjam. Solak\u2019s analysis cuts deep: \u201cGiven what we saw last season, I think Bigsby will win that battle in a fair fight \u2014 the decision might come down to which back returns more capital in a trade.\u201d Etienne\u2019s pedigree and contract expectations could make him valuable trade bait, especially for a team needing RB help and willing to offer draft capital (something the Jags crave after sending their 2026 1st-rounder in the Travis Hunter deal). Bigsby\u2019s cost-controlled rookie deal and late-season surge also hold significant value.<\/p>\n

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That debate also feeds into the demands that are being placed on the OL. \u201cYou want those tough physical guys that back it up,\u201d McManus continued, painting the blueprint. \u201cYou want them in your locker room\u2026on your team\u2026 out there in the field.\u201d This is the domino effect in motion. A new, vocal leader sets the tone in a drill.<\/p>\n

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A rookie guard like Wyatt Milum embraces the brawl. Suddenly, the expectation shifts. Complacency evaporates. \u201cAnd it\u2019s going to happen because it\u2019s that GM feeding the locker room with the kind of players they\u2019re looking for.\u201d What are they seeking? McManus cuts to the chase: \u201cIntangibly rich who love football.\u201d He leaves no room for ambiguity: \u201cWell, we all know what that means.\u201d<\/p>\n

The implications are crystal clear for Little and the entire O-line room. This isn\u2019t just about improving run-blocking grades (where Little was a respectable 28th) or shaving fractions off his 4.1% pressure-allowed rate. It\u2019s about embodying the new \u2018savage\u2019 identity Gladstone and Coen preach.<\/p>\n

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For Lawrence, entering a pivotal Year 5, this cultural shift isn\u2019t just welcome; it\u2019s essential.<\/a> His stats under pressure last year \u2013 a passer rating of 79.9 (10th best, but still a significant drop from his 89.65 clean) and a league-worst 24.1% completion rate outside the pocket \u2013 scream for a sturdier fortress.<\/p>\n

Little, now secured with a $40 M+ extension, stands squarely in the spotlight McManus shone. Does he have the \u201ctemperament\u201d to elevate from \u201cokay\u201d to foundational? The dominoes of toughness Gladstone is stacking around him are poised to fall. The hope in Duval is they knock down walls, not the franchise QB.<\/a> The \u201996 magic didn\u2019t happen by accident; it was forged. The anvil is heating up again.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"That electric, almost mythical charge in the air during the Jaguars\u2019 improbable \u201996 run to the AFC title…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":221961,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2060],"tags":[3077,7,44956,212,125,2401,213,6,3078,14992,3052,6431],"class_list":{"0":"post-221960","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-jacksonville-jaguars","8":"tag-3077","9":"tag-football","10":"tag-imagngalleryfeed","11":"tag-jacksonville","12":"tag-jacksonville-jaguars","13":"tag-jacksonvillejaguars","14":"tag-jaguars","15":"tag-nfl","16":"tag-quer","17":"tag-usatnsyndication","18":"tag-x0x","19":"tag-xkwx"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/114885518144184923","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/221960","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=221960"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/221960\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/221961"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=221960"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=221960"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=221960"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}