Ever since Urban Meyer skipped a team flight following a Week 4 loss to the Bengals, there have been questions surrounding the head coach’s commitment to and control within the Jaguars organization. In fact, we heard just last night that Meyer and GM Trent Baalke may not be seeing eye to eye. Well, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network has added some fuel to that fire this morning.
According to the reporter, tensions surrounding Meyer have “boiled over with multiple run-ins with players and other coaches in recent weeks.” This has led to rumblings that Meyer could be done in Jacksonville after only one season. The organization is naturally frustrated as they currently have a 2-10 record and have averaged only 10.6 points per game over the six contests since their bye. The HC has continually shifted blame on the players and coaches, per Pelissero, comments that have only helped to “exacerbated frustration in the building.”
The reporter provided more damning anecdotes that seem to show that things are spiraling out of control in Jacksonville. For starters, respected veteran wideout Marvin Jones recently left team facilities before returning and having a heated exchange with Meyer. Next, Meyer reportedly belittled coaches in a meeting by declaring that he was a “winner” and insinuating that his fellow coaches were “losers.” Finally, James Robinson‘s recent benching was indeed Meyer’s decision, and the HC tasked RB coach Bernie Parmalee with preventing the starter from reentering the game. Robinson only got more playing time once top-overall pick Trevor Lawrence questioned why his teammate wasn’t playing.
As Pelissero details, there’s a number of additional reasons why someone would question Meyer’s authority in Jacksonville. Multiple members of his staff have either stepped away or will be taking jobs elsewhere, and the organization was also slapped with fines about the HC’s violation of OTA rules (Meyer was also investigated after acknowledging that he factored vaccination status into his roster decisions). Then there was that whole flight fiasco earlier this season, which was followed by a notorious viral video that showed Meyer at a bar dancing with a woman.
Despite it all, Pelissero writes that owner Shad Khan has shown “no signs” of wanting to make a change. Khan has generally been loyal to his staff, and the owner had pursued Meyer for years. Unless things are truly too far gone, it sounds like Khan will be in favor of giving Meyer a second season with the organization.
I have a feeling Urban is due for another health problem that makes him unable to work, but will clear up when he’s ready to take another job.
Haha! That’s certainly seems the pattern.
Wonder if he isn’t having these “run ins” with staff and players to force Kahn to fire him. Take another year off and hope a prime college job opens
Such as the current opening out on the west coast?
I don’t think Oregon would do it for him. If Harbaugh leaves for the NFL that might be a possibility
It’s pretty clear that the players just never bought in. This didn’t start with the bar incident. They just never respected him to begin with. This is a league where Josh Gordon continually does drugs and breaks the rules, and guys still want him on their team. This is a league where players sleep around with whoever they want and some father multiple children with multiple women (Like Antonio Cromartie, or Josh Jacobs if the rumors are true.) How many NFL players get arrested every year? Let’s not pretend all (some are though) these guys are bastions of honor and integrity. They didn’t lose respect for the guy because he let a girl grind on him at a bar. They just never bought into the college coach in the first place.
You really think professional football players care if a coach taps some ass? They have Been doing it their whole lives. They probably high-fived and critiqued his taste. Don’t believe everything you read.
Grow up, man. What he said about the NFL is true.
I think any players with a sense of respect, dignity, and/or morality may have had a problem with it. And each team has at least a few of them left. This is a married man…not some 22 year old arrogant rookie
Randomguy, are you saying Urban has no blame here and has done a great job? You can take random shots at Josh Jacobs all you want, but the second my coach declines a team flight to go party with randos, my respect for him is gone.
He didnt say that at all. His whole comment was just that Meyer was trash and didnt have his team backing him regardless of the scandal happening or not.
I’ve re-read my comment several times just to make sure, but no, that’s not what I said.
Well Matt Rhule and Pete Carroll were college coaches and never had the problems Urban did. u act like having kids from multiple people is bad. And Yes players will lose respect for u when u lie to them
Having kids with multiple people is not necessarily good or bad-but it shows (at the very least) a lack of good judgement and sound decision making.
When seen it at extremes (kids with 3 or more different partners), a fair assessment of that person’s character is that they are quite egocentric and disloyal.
The issue was not what he was doing when he was supposed to be with his team, it’s that he was not with his team.
Did they think he was a joke before that? Hopefully. And probably. But after that, they had the public excuse to give up and did.
Would their reaction have been the same if he had skipped out to go to a stamp collecting convention? Yes…or worse. Many want to defend him as if prudishness rather than professionalism was the issue. That’s a red herring.
Bad hire from day one, but why are so many people SO intent on defending him brazenly not doing his job?
Football coaches are fanatics. First in, last out. When the coach doesn’t care…it’s over.
Not defending him. Just pointing out that guys weren’t on board with him to begin with. The bar incident only made it worse, but it wasn’t the start.
Meyer has been a disaster. Like many “college” coaches trying to win in the NFL when you have to compete for talent rather than select it can be a whole different ballgame. Just take a look at Nick Saban and Steve Spurrier.
Of course, it’s never as simple as that. Some of the other people, including players, should be taking a hard look at themselves. After all, the prior Coach (Doug Marrone) wasn’t exactly a ringing success. The problems in Jacksonville is not just one man. A lot of other things are going on there.
Yeah, like Shad Khan, the owner.
What are you’re issues with Khan?
Dudes a great owner.
He just hasn’t been able to find the right Football people to run his team.
I don’t hear anyone talking about Detroits owner?
Finding the right football people and putting them in a position to succeed is a pretty big part of the owner’s job.
The Lions ownership sucks. William Clay Ford took ownership of that team on November 22, 1963. Anyone know the significance of that date? It’s the day JFK was assassinated. Talk about a bad omen. With a few good years here and there, they’ve pretty much sucked since then. The Fords are the one constant. Ownership does make a difference.
You obviously are not from the Detroit area. Fans here have been all over the Ford’s for years
Shad Khan is part of the problem with this organization with keeping head coaches way past when it’s been time time fire them! He kept Gus Bradley for 4 seasons and Doug Marrone for 3. Maybe that’s why he has been the second fastest NFL franchise owner to reach over 100 so fast! He has absolutely no clue what he’s doing! Fire this guy because the writing is on the wall! Meyer needs to go now! I’m sick of this guy and your ticket sales already suck. You want to make them worse next year by keeping this guy?! That says a lot about your knowledge of football Shad Khan!
So first you say he is too loyal and keeps coaches too long then immediately say Khan needs to fire Meyer right now.
Many Owners don’t know much about football…that’s why they hire football people.
Khan just hasn’t found the right ones.
Bingo. 1st step his hiring a capable GM/President of Ops. Shore up the front office and let them do their job.
Ok, He kept the GM Dave Caldwell for 9 seasons and didn’t fire him. Under Dave Caldwell Shad Khan was the second fastest owner in NFL history to reach 100 losses! He doesn’t know what he’s doing. Are you even a Jaguar fan? Caldwell had countless draft busts, the Ramsey debacle where Jim Caldwell chewed him out in a closet and then Ramsey faked a back injury to be traded! Yannick Ngakoue has an argument with Tony Khan and wants out of Jax. Khan hires Coughlin to oversee VP operations and he is fining players when he’snot supposed to. Coughlin gets rid of Allen Robinson, Hurns, and a bunch of players that hurt this club because Coughlin has zero experience being a VP of operations. He gets fired the next year under the Marrone regime and everyone think because Coughlin is gone that Marrone can finally “breathe” and have a decent season. Yeah, right, they go 1-15. When has Khan ever had success?
Khan has owned this team since 2008 and has had ONE winning season! The rest have been 10 or more loss seasons. Everyone he is hiring is wrong. GM, coach, whomever. He needs to surround himself with better people who know the game. The previous owner, Wayne Weaver didn’t have this problem as Khan is having. Weaver went to an AFC Championship game in his second year and then another in under five years of owning the team.
Khaaaaaan!!!!!
Awesome reference LOL!
Praying for him
I would have assumed he would have faked a heart attack by now.
Shad Khan seems like a guy who means well and genuinely wants to win, but he’s shown an alarming inability to hire the right people, and then to keep those people on too long. I never liked the Meyer hire and I’m not at all surprised by all of the chaos going on. Khan is ultimately responsible of course, but this time can he do the right thing and blow it up sooner rather than later?
He’s like the owner of the Sacramento Kings. Seems nice, genuinely wants to build a winner, but terrible in hiring decisions.
The winner sounds like he’s losing it.
Recruiting and yelling at boys in college isn’t the same as coaching in the NFL.
Meyer has always been a good recruiter but horrible at preparing QB’s for the next level.
Jason Garret probably would’ve been a better hire, at least for Trevor Lawrence’s development.
I think he lost the team with the Tebow mess. NFL players do drugs, have dozens of children with dozens of women, act like wannabe gangsters, stay out all hours, etc. I don’t think Coach letting some hot blonde grind him after a loss was anything that they were all that offended by. I think bringing in an evangelical Christian to play a position he had never played after being out of the league for a decade was probably the issue.
Hiring Chris Doyle was also a massive unforced error.
It’s not the dancing, it’s the commitment to the team.
NFL coaches ask these players to buy in and devote their efforts to a common goal.
The coach should be with the team after a loss, working on winning.
They’re mad about him not delivering wins and then leaving them to answer media questions about their coaches commitment
Did anyone actually think this would work out?
Trent Baalke doesn’t get along with college coaches… when they lose
This guy is a total clown
What was the Jags record before Urban? Oh yea that’s right. He’s a stubborn college coach used to winning and everyone buying in. You have a squad that’s mostly there just to collect a paycheck not play for a coach or organization. That’s the key difference between college and the pros that makes or breaks career college coaches when they get to the NFL. BB has only been able to wield that same type of mantra because he won so much.
One other thing that breaks coaches is being a complete arrogant jackass at every turn and refuses accountability of himself