News about assistant coaching hires rarely registers in the headlines. However, the dynamic between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Jacksonville Jaguars deserves additional attention because of how Liam Coen became the latter’s head coach.
Coen initially declined the Jaguars’ job but changed his mind after the AFC South franchise fired general manager Trent Baalke. However, Coen was about to sign a contract extension as Buccaneers offensive coordinator before Baalke’s firing occurred. Multiple reports revealed that the Bucs couldn’t contact Coen anymore when he was at Jacksonville.
No favors: Buccaneers blocked Jacksonville’s request to interview its assistant offensive line coach, Brian Picucci, who left Kentucky with Liam Coen to go to Tampa. Jags were able to hire Coen, but not Picucci.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 31, 2025
This time, the Buccaneers blocked the Jaguars to interview one of their coaches. As ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter tweeted, the Bucs declined the Jaguars’ request to interview its assistant offensive line coach, Brian Picucci. Coen and Picucci left the University of Kentucky at the same time to join the Buccaneers.
However, the Bucs won’t let Coen have his way by declining the interview with Picucci. While the two teams won’t meet in 2025, this dizzying turn of events will have the fan bases of both teams monitor how the other squad fared.
-Lance Fernandez