After the Jacksonville Jaguars’ disappointing loss to the Houston Texans in Week 1, talk about head coach Urban Meyer potentially bolting to USC surfaced. The very first thing Meyer did when he spoke to the local media Wednesday was putting the rumors about his potential departure to rest, “There’s no chance. I’m here, committed to try to build the organization”.
However, the presser didn’t stop there and Meyer went on to talk about several topics, including Jacksonville’s Week 2 opponent, the Denver Broncos. The Jaguars head coach described the Broncos’ defense as well-coached and highlighted their fundamentals and their physicalness at the line of scrimmage. Later in the sitdown, Meyer mentioned something that might not sound like something relevant at first but it will important during his tenure in Jacksonville.
"And I’m very transparent with our players, and [have] a lot of respect for these guys. I have not wavered on that so we all have to do just better, getting ready to go and playing better."
Meyer has been criticized for many things, such as undermining his coaching staff, losing his temper, or offering Tim Tebow a roster spot in training camp. However, one thing he has been accused of is not being a straight shooter with his players. The former Ohio State head coach is still making the transition to the pros and there are many things he will need to change in his approach but you don’t hear reports about him having a bad relationship with his players.
Moving forward this will be key as the Jaguars are in the early stages of a rebuild. Meyer can’t lie to players or he will quickly lose them. If he can get them to buy into his program, he will have an easier time implementing his vision, which in turn should translate into the Jaguars winning more games.
Jacksonville Jaguars CB Shaquill Griffin has to bring the guys along.
Cornerback Shaquill Griffin also met with the local media Wednesday and talked about his role as a veteran on the team. He is aware that the Jaguars are riding a 16-game losing streak but it’s up to him, and the other team captains to bringing young players along.
"For captains, we got to do a little bit more. We got to bring the guys along, we got to keep them up, keep the spirits up and getting them starting to believe in something that’s a lot bigger than just that game 1."
Griffin’s role in the locker room will be key. He must lead with example and help his younger teammates cope with losing, which is not easy at all. The Jaguars haven’t been good in a while and they are building from scratch. Thus, it will be up to the 2017 third-round pick to have a positive influence. As he pointed out, he’s experienced what it feels like to win and lose.
Then again, the team that drafted Griffin, the Seattle Seahawks, hasn’t lost at the same rate the Jags have lost over the last three years. In that span, the Hawks dropped 15 games while the Jags lost that amount in 2020 alone. Thus, this will also be sort of a different experience for him. As important as his influence will be in the locker room, he also needs to play better.
During the presser, Griffin talked about a potential interception he dropped in the second play of the season opener and noted the need to make those kind of plays, “I got to make that play, something that I got to work… It’s little details like that that we have to fix”.
The Jags gave Griffin a three-year contract worth $44.5 million in the offseason because they want him to be a key cog on and off the field. If he plays like the player that made the Pro Bowl in 2019, his younger teammates won’t hesitate to follow his lead.
Jacksonville Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence is taking on his leadership role.
Despite the fact that quarterback Trevor Lawrence is a rookie, his teammates deemed him good enough to be a captain. Listening to him speak kind of explains why he earned the honor. Right after the Jaguars’ loss to the Texans, he took responsibility for turning the ball over and not making enough plays to beat their AFC South foes. And once again, Lawrence held himself accountable when he met with the local media Wednesday.
"I gotta do a better job take care of the ball. It’s so important in this game, especially in this league. You go down in the margin minus three, it’s gonna be hard to overcome that, so it’s all of us though we all got we all got to be better, but it starts with me for sure."
Lawrence certainly has room for improvement. Nobody will have a three-interception game and claim they played mistake-free. Nevertheless, it’s unrealistic to expect him to play like First-Team All-Pro after just one NFL start. Down the road, the Jaguars will lean more on him. For the time being, he needs to keep working on his craft.
On the bright side, he looked promising against the Texans, showing poise and good pocket awareness. However, he also knows that he and the rest of the team need to work on those little things. He didn’t throw anybody under the bus though, and he isn’t the kind of person that is going to make passive-aggressive comments but he’s right.
The Jaguars coaching staff needs to put together a more balanced game plan, one that doesn’t have the rookie passer dropping back more than 51 times per game. Also, the defense needs to make more stops, apply more pressure up front, and force a couple of turnovers.
One game doesn’t make or break the Jaguars’ season. Lawrence knows it and he will keep improving throughout the year but he will need help.