The Jacksonville Jaguars continue to be an absolute dumpster fire, and head coach Urban Meyer is standing there with a lighter and gasoline.
Meyer’s Jaguars were shut out by the Tennessee Titans in a Week 14 loss in which No. 1 overall pick Trevor Lawrence threw four interceptions and the entire team rushed for eight yards on eight carries. It certainly wasn’t surprising, but nevertheless was a complete embarrassment.
And while that was bad enough, the events that followed — again, not surprising, but embarrassing — were worse.
Meyer looked like a pouting toddler when Titans head coach Mike Vrabel ran his way for a postgame handshake. Vrabel was on Meyer’s staff at Ohio State, meaning he probably is one of the few head coaches who still respects him.
Then came Meyer’s postgame press conference where he was asked a handful of questions about a report that came out this week. The NFL Network report indicated there was some unsettling treatment of Meyer’s assistant coaches as well as an exchange with wideout Marvin Jones. Meyer said Sunday the report of the assistant coaches was “inaccurate” and the one on Jones was “nonsense.”
But he did come back with this:
“… What’s the answer? Start leaking some information or some nonsense? No. No. That’s nonsense. That’s garbage,” Meyer said, per the team. “If there is a source, then that source is unemployed. I mean, within seconds. If there’s some source that’s doing it.”
No matter what Meyer says publicly, it’s time for Jaguars owner Shad Khan to pull the plug.
Many thought (and have been proven right) that Jacksonville got it wrong from the jump. And while it is a bit of a public relations nightmare to admit it just 14 weeks into Meyer’s first NFL season, the only thing worse would be letting it marinate. The Jaguars need to focus on developing Lawrence and a young roster. Sunday’s results with a four-interception day is one of the quickest ways to shatter the rookie’s confidence.
Lawrence even somewhat came out and voiced a difference in opinion with Meyer last week pertaining to Jacksonville running back James Robinson. Lawrence said Robinson needs to be on the field as he is one of the team’s best players, after Meyer benched Robinson for clouded circumstances in Week 13. Robinson received just six touches Sunday. Meyer is leading a very uninspired football team, and he’s more likely than not the reason for the lack of inspiration.
All of this comes after a laundry list of off-the-field missteps by Meyer.
There was his own personal situation which was magnified by the fact he did not fly back with the team after a loss, instead going to his own bar. Then there was the fact he previously hired (and soon fired) Chris Doyle as Jacksonville’s director of sports performance. Doyle quickly had troubling allegations against him surface.
It started on a sour note, and has continued to build.
All this is to say that Meyer shouldn’t be gone simply because Jacksonville fell to 2-11 on the season yesterday, or the fact the Jaguars have lost five straight. After all, head coach Dan Campbell has struggled with the Detroit Lions this season, but those two don’t come close to the same playing field because of how players play for Campbell, and his reaction to each and every loss.
Meyer should not and likely does not invoke the slightest confidence among Jaguars fans. And it’s time for the organization to move on from a bad hire.
