Gene Frenette: Jaguars receivers should benefit from coach Chad Hall's relentless enthusiasm

Once the nine steel yellow squares connected like a ladder are laid on the ground, which signals the start of an agility drill for the Jacksonville Jaguars receiver group, a 5-foot-8 bearded man with a ponytail and small towel sticking out of his black bucket hat starts yapping.

The voice is unrelenting, yet positive: “Good! Back and forth, I like it. Pop. Pop. Pop. Stay low. Stay low.”

Prior to the next drill, the man entrusted to help Calvin Ridley, Christian Kirk, Zay Jones and Jamal Agnew blend into one of the NFL’s best receiving corps bends down, plants his right foot to demonstrate exactly what he wants to see, saying: “Weight on the right foot. Explode!”

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Chandler “Chad” Hall is by no means an imposing physical presence. He doesn’t appear much different from a UPS driver that drops boxes on doorsteps.

You’d never know to look at him that Hall spent parts of four seasons in the NFL, staying long enough with the Philadelphia Eagles enough to catch two touchdown passes, including one from Michael Vick.

But within the Jaguars’ practice field, meeting rooms and other places where Hall imparts wisdom and goes about his daily craft, he commands enormous respect.

It goes deeper than receivers who appreciate learning from a coach that played the position at the highest level and was once a Heisman Trophy candidate at the Air Force Academy.

Hall also has the unique perspective of serving a two-year military stint — prior to making the NFL as an undrafted free agent — where the second lieutenant was a maintenance officer.

Before ever catching an NFL pass, Hall was in charge of 300 pilots (many deployed to Afghanistan) and 31 F-16 jets with the 421st Fighter Squadron, known as “black widows,” at Hill Air Force Base in Utah.

“It’s a childhood dream to play in the NFL, but I think everyone should serve their country in some sort of way,” said Hall, whose last NFL chapter was as a Jaguars’ practice-squad player in 2014. “It was a privilege to do that. It helped me grow up in so many different ways.”

Now the first-year Jaguars coach hopes his unique work experience can produce another transformation — elevating Trevor Lawrence’s receivers into a force that helps turn the offense into one of the most feared units in the NFL.

Creating lifetime bonds

Among the lessons Hall gleaned from his NFL playing days was the importance of seeing coaches as more than just authority figures.

During his time with the Eagles, San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs — previously reinforced in college when he led Air Force one season in both receiving and rushing yards — Hall came to believe a player’s potential could be maximized if he felt intricately connected to his teammates and position coach.

So, once the Buffalo Bills promoted him from offensive assistant to receivers coach in 2019, he made it a priority to get to know players like Cole Beasley, Isaiah McKenzie and John Brown on a personal level, then newly-acquired Pro Bowler Stefon Diggs the following season when he came over from the Minnesota Vikings.

“We had Diggs, the problem child coming to Buffalo, and I gelled that,” said Hall. “That’s my favorite part of the job, to create those relationships on and off the field. It’s my job to make sure this room is controlled and playing at the highest level. You can’t play this position without confidence.

“If you don’t think you’re the best, you’re going to lose it quick. That’s what I want, [receivers] playing fast with confidence. That’s part of my job. I got to give that to them.”

When Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson hired Hall in February after his contract expired with Buffalo — the Bills blocked Pederson from hiring him in 2018 when he was head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles — it didn’t take long for the 37-year-old Atlanta native to begin a new bonding process.

There were built-in advantages coming to Jacksonville. He had a previous relationship with Pederson, who was the Eagles’ quarterbacks coach when Hall played there. Special teams coach Heath Farwell, who put up Hall at his house for six weeks before his wife, Rose, and three small kids could move down from Buffalo, and receiver Jones were both employed by the Bills during Hall’s time there.

Of course, the appeal of coming to Jacksonville certainly wasn’t diminished by the Jaguars acquiring Ridley, a true No. 1 receiver, in a November trade with the Atlanta Falcons.

“There’s just an excitement down here, almost like Buffalo when I first started there,” Hall said in choosing the Jaguars over multiple NFL offers. “The Bills hadn’t made the playoffs in 17 years and we made it [in 2017] and just kept growing from there.

“I kind of felt that energy with the Jaguars and Doug [Pederson] is such a good leader, so I can learn a lot from him. It was tough to leave my guys in Buffalo. We’ve stayed in touch, they still ask me things. Those relationships are lifetime, but now I’m going to create more relationships that’ll last a lifetime.”

Part of Hall’s heart will always be in Buffalo. Three years ago, the Bills’ receivers — then rookie Gabriel Davis, Beasley, Diggs and McKenzie among them — appreciated his impact so much that on Christmas Eve, they pooled their funds to buy him a new truck. They blindfolded Hall, then took him outside before revealing the gift-wrapped vehicle.

Relating to Ridley

One thing Hall has in common with Lawrence is a desire to get on the same page with his receivers, particularly a special talent like Ridley.

The unusual circumstance of Ridley being nearly two years in football exile, partially for a mental health break and then serving an NFL gambling suspension, presents a unique challenge.

But who better to help with that transition than Hall? He knows what it’s like to take a two-year break from playing football when he served out his Air Force commitment.

“The on-field stuff he had with Atlanta, I knew it’d come back,” Hall said of Ridley. “I knew what he was capable of. Me and him getting on a common ground and just establishing that trust, that was the first thing I needed to get done, and we’ve done that.

“I look at my life after college, serving in the military for two years and then playing again. Calvin is way better than I am, so I knew he could do it.”

Ridley, stoked about the opportunity to show his skillset hasn’t diminished after a long absence, and his fellow receivers are equally excited to see what Hall can draw out of them.

“I had a bunch of wide receiver coaches and he’s very different,” said Ridley. “He was a player, he’s a lot younger than the [coaches] I had. He just brings a lot of energy.”

Exuberant sideline demeanor

No player knows Hall better than Jones, who spent his first three NFL seasons with him in Buffalo and is quite familiar with how excited he can get on a game-day sideline.

“I can do a killer Chad [imitation],” said Jones, though he prefers not to show it publicly.

Other Jaguars receivers already feed off Hall’s enthusiasm in practice and meetings, but they’ll have to wait another month before seeing how that energy will manifest itself in regular season games.

“The only thing [Hall] said we have to be ready for is game day,” said Jaguars rookie receiver Parker Washington. “He’s wild on game day.”

It’s impossible for Hall to curb his enthusiasm. When Brown returned to Buffalo last year and caught a 42-yard TD pass against the New England Patriots — after playing briefly for three teams (including the Jaguars) in 2021 — nobody around the league was surprised when an animated Hall reacted like a kid at Christmas.

The Jaguars, who immediately targeted Hall to replace Chad Jackson after he left for Texas, certainly didn’t view his sideline demeanor as a detriment.

“Everything we knew from Doug’s experience with him, Heath’s [Farwell] relationship with him, we just felt like he’d be a fit for us, with our [receiver] room, with our staff, so he was really the only [candidate] we went after,” said Jaguars offensive coordinator Press Taylor.

“We were making fun of him the other day because he was celebrating something on the sideline of a [film] clip, and I said, 'Finally, we get to see this on our sideline because we’ve all watched this in Buffalo for years, of him running up and down.'"

Hall makes no apologies for his game-day antics, even when it means taking some ribbing from opposing players.

“When we’re playing, some of the defensive guys will come up and give me a hard time jokingly, saying ‘I know exactly who you are running up and down the sideline,’“ said Hall. “That’s just me. I put so much love and time and passion with my guys, so when they’re making plays, I get so excited.

“That’s why I do this job. I love my family too much. If I’m going to do this job, it’s got to mean much more than just the Xs and Os.”

Some of his receivers believe the reason Hall gets so amped up about coaching is that, deep inside, a part of him still wants to suit up.

“That’s another part you love about him,” said Kirk. “I’m sure he’d give an arm and a leg to get back out there and take another [NFL] snap.”

A winning connection

Aside from Jones, the Jaguars’ receivers didn’t wait until reporting for offseason conditioning in April to begin sizing up Hall.

Information is readily available for veteran players who have built up a network of contacts during their careers. Kirk and Agnew didn’t waste any time vetting their incoming position coach.

Kirk is good friends with Bills quarterback Josh Allen and Davis, while Agnew is tight with Indianapolis Colts receiver McKenzie, who spent the last five seasons in Buffalo with Hall.

“Isaiah [McKenzie] was like, ‘Chad is one of the best coaches you’ll ever have,’ “ said Agnew. “Just having the word of mouth from players who have been coached and taught by him, I feel like that means everything.”

The ringing endorsement Kirk received from his Buffalo contacts matches what he’s seen so far from Hall during OTAs and training camp.

“The Bills’ guys were pretty open about what he’s done for their careers, growing them not only as receivers, but as men,” said Kirk. “A lot of positive reinforcement behind his name and what he’s done, so we were pretty confident when he came in that we all were going to like him and love him.

“He’s always coaching, that’s the thing I respect about him. A lot of coaches surprisingly don’t have that at this level. He understands how great we can be, so there’s not going to be a day go by where he doesn’t push us or nit-pick. He wants everything to be perfect.”

To facilitate a winning environment, Hall began pushing his players in the spring to get together away from football. Hall came up with the idea of he and receivers who owned homes in the area alternately hosting dinners for the group.

It didn’t surprise Jones. He remembers when Hall was an assistant receivers coach in Buffalo, he always had time for one-on-one conversations. Nothing has changed in that regard, which the receiver inner circle believes can be an asset on game days.

“I think it helps tremendously,” Jones said. “This thing is about relationships. We spend more time in this building than we do with our respective families on a day-to-day basis, with traveling and film room meetings. Growing closer and understanding each other, it creates a foundation, something to fight for within your group.

“You can throw out the word family and brotherhood frivolously, but if you’re going to create an actual bond, you find things in common and work through issues. That’s when those relationships strengthen. Chad has really emphasized that. So when we’re out there on Sunday, we’re playing for something greater than ourselves.”

A deep pool of talent

Beyond Hall’s personal touch, it’s easy to see why Bills’ receivers still feel a connection to him. Many of them had career years under his watch. During his four-year tenure (2019-22) leading that group, Buffalo’s offense ranked third in the NFL at 27.0 points per game and fourth in yards per game at 376.6.

It’s not a stretch to think the same thing could happen in Jacksonville. Looking at the entire receiving corps, especially if you include tight end Evan Engram, this could be the deepest group in Jaguars’ history.

Ridley and Kirk might not match the 1-2 punch of all-time greats Jimmy Smith and Keenan McCardell. However, the depth behind them with Jones and Agnew and a tight end weapon like Engram may allow Lawrence to have one of the NFL’s best offenses in 2023 and beyond.

“When we added Calvin [Ridley], we were like, ‘Wow, this receiver room is going to have so much potential,'” said Agnew. “I hate throwing the word potential out there. We still got to put the work in and mesh together, but we can have a special year.

“I think you can put this receiver room up with anybody in the NFL. We have a lot of depth.”

Over the past three years, Buffalo’s 28.8 points per game average is behind only the Kansas City Chiefs (29.0). A big part of the Bills’ success was Hall’s receiver group, which had the benefit of a young gunslinger in Allen at quarterback.

Now the Jaguars are counting on an undersized ex-NFL receiver to bring similar results to a new group of pass-catchers, who have an ascending, 23-year-old Lawrence as their gunslinger.

The value of Hall’s football journey — being only the third Jaguars receivers coach with NFL playing experience, after Ken Anderson (2004) and McCardell (2017-20) — should not be underestimated. Receivers feel emboldened that he has walked in their shoes.

“He’s probably one of the best teachers I’ve been around,” said Agnew. “He knows the game so well and he knows how to get more out of you. Even if you feel like you’re pretty good at something, he knows how to find something that gets you even better.”

Jaguars’ receivers believe this offense can be as potent as any unit in the NFL. They’re always looking for that extra edge.

The presence of Chad Hall, the relationship-builder, just might give it to them.

Gfrenette@jacksonville.com: (904) 359-4540

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jaguars' receiving corps has unique driving force in coach Chad Hall