CINCINNATI -- Liam Coen admits he was angry that quarterback Trevor Lawrence missed a potential touchdown throw, but the Jacksonville Jaguars coach said he was just reacting in the moment.
Cameras caught Coen gesturing to Lawrence that he wanted him to throw the ball to receiver Dyami Brown's body instead of throwing it higher, which is what happened on the second-and-goal play from the Cincinnati 7-yard line early in the fourth quarter.
"I was pissed," Coen said after the Bengals' 31-27 victory at Paycor Stadium. "It is what it is. That's emotion. It's not personal ever. That's just kind of me getting worked up."
Immediately after saying that, he praised Lawrence's next throw, which was to receiver Brian Thomas Jr., but was also incomplete because it bounced off Thomas' hands.
"He threw a dime in the back of the end zone," Coen said. "We don't make a play. I was very pleased with [Lawrence's] competitive nature. The way he stayed calm on the sidelines. He's pretty even keeled, which is good for me. I need that."
Lawrence, who waved Coen's criticism off, said he likes that Coen is so animated and that some of his enthusiasm has rubbed off on him.
"Coach is really passionate, which is something that I've noticed ever since he's been here," Lawrence said. "I love that about him, and we'll get fired up. There's times where I'm not always that way, I'm kind of a little more like this [holding his hands on a level line], but he's honestly brought a little bit more of that out of me, which I think has been good for our offense.
"I've kind of fed off of him and there's times we get excited and get fired up."
