Liam Coen won't be discouraged by a single overseas loss to a divisional rival.
While last week's nail-biter went in Jacksonville's favor, this week's did not.
The Jacksonville Jaguars return home 4-2 after falling to the Houston Texans 34-31 on a last-second 49-yard field goal.
The Jaguars made numerous mistakes against Houston, including a costly 12-men-on-the-field penalty that gave the Texans a touchdown when the Jaguars lined up to punt. Coen said the team was in punt safe, meaning no one should have left the field. Still, the head coach accepted blame.
"We made a mistake of subbing off in a fourth-and-one moment when we should... we were in just punt safe and nobody should leave the field," said Coen.
failing grade for a leaky defense
The team also threw a red-zone interception and allowed the Texans to march down the field at the end of halftime and the game to score 10 points and win.
While the Jaguars had to do a lot of self-reflection and changed much of their second-half-of-the-season plans after last year's loss at Wembley, this year's loss is far different. Coen isn't changing much; he doesn't need to.
"We didn't get the result we wanted. We're not going to change a thing about our process," Coen said in postgame.
The Jaguars will evaluate the team and clean up areas they feel were below par through the first six games, including what the team failed to do Sunday against Houston. But they won't give up after a close loss.
Jaguars' confidence isn't shaken by loss to Texans
Coen's confidence in the Jaguars comes from what he's seen this season, especially the team's ability to stay in games after trailing.
Despite being down by double digits multiple times this season, Jacksonville has clawed back to win or fall just short. The team has not been blown out this season, nor have they had a particularly bad loss. "
"I'm extremely proud of this team and the way they kept fighting today. Going down 10 points, 10 points, 10 points, kept fighting, kept fighting. Give ourselves a chance in a quasi-two-minute drill to go win the game," Coen said.
"We end up kicking it, settling. Cam [Little] makes a huge kick to put us in position to tie that football game, and I'm extremely proud of this team and confident in this group moving forward."
The Jaguars have played two back-to-back close games and suffered a close Week 2 loss to the Denver Broncos this season. Jacksonville has won big this year, beating the Cleveland Browns and New England Patriots by double digits and winning a close Week 4 game in Cincinnati.
Jacksonville's players have faced many different scenarios this season, giving Coen the confidence he needs to keep the ship moving in the right direction as he returns after a week away.
"It's good for us to be in these games, especially early on in the season," Coen said. "We're six weeks in, a little bit more tested at times than maybe at times last year at this time."
Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence echoed his head coach's confidence.
"We got a lot of confidence, and we know who we are," Lawrence said. "We don't need to go soul searching or anything like that."
Still, the team has plenty to clean up.
Costly mistakes remain a concern for Jaguars
Though controversial, the Jaguars were called for a holding penalty that wiped out a touchdown run by running back Bhayshul Tuten early in the contest. Lawrence threw an interception to end the series.
It was yet another time the Jaguars gave up points they could have had. In Week 3 against the New England Patriots, the Jaguars wiped out a Parker Washington touchdown catch; in Week 4 against the Bengals, penalties wiped out two touchdowns; and against the Philadelphia Eagles last week, the Jaguars had an opening kickoff return for a touchdown called back.
Three of the possessions netted points, including two touchdowns. Still, three others ended in a punt, a field goal and an interception. While the Texans didn't score off of the mishap, it cost the Jaguars points and valuable time that ultimately bit them at the end of the contest.
Beyond the red-zone interception, Jacksonville lost a possession due to the aforementioned 12-men-on-the-field penalty and drew two pass interference penalties that led to Houston touchdowns.
A 17-yard DPI by cornerback/receiver Travis Hunter with about 20 seconds remaining in the second quarter led to a one-yard touchdown pass from Texans QB C.J. Stroud to tight end Foster Moreau with 12 seconds left.
Near the end of the third quarter, Jaguars CB Jarrian Jones was called for a 19-yard DPI, giving Houston a first down at Jacksonville's 215. Texans running back Jawhar Jordan scored a rushing touchdown on the very next play.
"How can we continue to do the little things better and better because they cost you in these tight games," Lawrence said after the contest. "We've gotten away with a little bit in the past."
The Jaguars won't be able to rely on bailouts going forward, as Jacksonville's second loss of the season shows.
Young Jaguars provide reasons for optimism
While the Jaguars didn't win Sunday, they got a glimpse of what Hunter and other young players can turn into in Jacksonville.
Hunter caught four passes for 59 yards and a touchdown and recorded three tackles and an interception on defense. Hunter caught all four targets, including a seven-yard touchdown.
Hunter became the first player in NFL history since Brian Dawkins in 2002 to record a receiving touchdown and an interception in the same game.
Meanwhile, Tuten has taken on an expanded role in Jacksonville's offense this year. The Jaguars have used him more in the passing game, and it's paying off. Tuten totaled 39 rushing yards on 12 carries and caught four passes for 48 yards and two receiving touchdowns against Houston.
"Definitely a huge confidence booster, I would say," Tuten said after the game about his performance Sunday. "You know, the offense put a lot of trust in me, all the coaching staff, the players. So it's just my job to go out there and execute."
Ultimately, games like these help teams in the long run, Coen said.
"Helps us continue to know what we have out of this group in some of those moments for sure," Coen said.
Demetrius Harvey is the Jacksonville Jaguars reporter for the Florida Times-Union. You can follow him on X (formerly Twitter) at @Demetrius82 or on BlueskyatDemetrius.
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This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Why Liam Coen isn't changing course after Jaguars' loss to Texans
