Jonathan Jones took to Twitter a short while ago and, with Bucs fans (and apparently the Bucs, too) outraged that (former ?) Bucs offensive coordinator Liam Coen apparently reneged on a deal to return to Tampa to be one of the game’s highest offensive coordinators, Jones put this issue in proper perspective.
The agreement doesn’t mean jack.
@jjones9: Coen’s deal with Tampa is unsigned but even if it were signed, it’s my understanding that still wouldn’t prevent him from entertaining the Jaguars and ultimately taking a deal to be their head coach.
Joe made that point earlier. Coordinator contracts can’t prevent a guy from leaving for a promotion. Now the contract could have been written that included substantial penalties if the contract were broken, or broken early. But that doesn’t prevent the owner of a new club from cutting the new coach a signing bonus to pay the penaties.
So in the big picture, Coen’s contract is just a talking point, a distraction.
It’s pretty clear to Joe that this “agreement” was used by Coen as leverage to get the general manager he wanted in Jacksonville.
