Jaguars: Urban Meyer explains puzzling decision to attempt onside kick

After losing 31-7 to the Seattle Seahawks, Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Myles Jack told the media there were some positives but also noted that the negatives are always going to stand out.

There were certainly some bright spots in the Jags’ Week 8 loss but the bad ones definitely outweighed the very few things that went right. While some of them fall on the players, a good chunk of them fall on the coaches’ shoulders.

How can you not know there are 12 men on the field at any given time? That’s just a lack of oversight. The fact that the Jags were flagged 12 times is inexcusable and reflects poorly on the coaching staff. They made some questionable decisions but the most puzzling one came towards the end of the game.

After the Jaguars scored on a passing touchdown by Trevor Lawrence in the fourth quarter, the team attempted an onside kick with 1:59 left on the clock and despite the fact that they were down 24-7.

The Seahawks recovered and scored a touchdown, making the final score even more lopsided than it was. Looking back, it seemed unnecessary, so why did Jacksonville give it a shot? Because why not? Although that may oversimply the decision, that’s more or less the explanation head coach Urban Meyer gave to the local media Monday.

"I just wanted to get the seven points, “let’s get one more possession”. Let’s slip this guy, we just got Matt [Wright]. There’s ways to kick that onside kick and so I said, “Okay, when trying to steal another possession”."

When a member of the media noted the Jaguars were down three possessions, Meyer said they did it “for the experience”. There was no profound explanation or a logical reason behind the attempt. They simply did it because they could, “hey why don’t we try an onside kick?”.

However you look at it, it was a bad choice, and “to get experience” isn’t a good enough reason. Just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should do it. The game was already decided at that point. Even if the attempt had been successful, the Jags didn’t gain much from it. On the contrary, he exposed his players to potential injuries. Fortunately, no player got hurt but the Seahawks scored.

That’s not the only topic Meyer touched on Monday. He also shared an update about running back James Robinson and the 2021 trade deadline.