We're still more than a month away from Week 1 of the NFL season, but the trash talk is nearing midseason form.
Coming off a stellar 13-win season, Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Liam Coen feels that his squad has been overlooked. According to the second-year head coach, that is one of the great benefits of coaching his team.
Speaking with 1010 XL in Florida, Coen said all the motivation his team needs comes from the shortage of attention given to them.
"This is the best part about coaching the Jacksonville Jaguars – you don't have to make up telling your players stuff," Coen said. "You don't have to make up the fire, you don't have to make it up. It's given to us everyday. ...
"I just go, pull out my phone, look at the NFL Network website, and
just pop up here, and I'm just curious if I see any photos or anything about the Jacksonville Jaguars. I think I'll just scroll right on through, I think I'll see 40 pictures of Caleb Williams, and I won't see a single thing about any of our players on here."
Williams, the Chicago Bears quarterback, has garnered plenty of eyes for his electric play since entering the league as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
His head coach, Ben Johnson, isn't worried about another head coach invoking his quarterback's name, adding that he noticed some less-than positive press thrown his team's way.
"Well, we’re the No. 1 regression candidate, so I think we’ve got plenty of motivation ourselves," Johnson told reporters on Friday, July 31. "We’ve talked about Caleb in the past. He’s used to handling a lot of attention, so I’m not worried about that."
Williams is looking to become the Bears' first-ever 4,000-yard passer. He flirted with that figure in 2025, tossing 3,942 yards and 27 touchdowns to seven interceptions as the Bears made the playoffs and downed NFC North rival Green Bay in the wild-card round.
Both teams figure to be in contention for the playoffs again this season, with a fun twist: Chicago hosts Jacksonville in Week 13 this season, when both teams should be in the thick of the race.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Liam Coen says Jaguars don't get hype, cites '40 pictures of Caleb Williams'
