Nowadays, two things come to mind when you see Urban Meyer’s name is trending on social media. Either he got fired or he made a questionable decision and neither development would be shocking right now, as the Jacksonville Jaguars are 2-11 and regressing by the week. The worst part is that the way there are no signs things are going to get better any time soon.
In Week 14, the Jags got shut down by the Tennesse Titans, the first time since 2009. Things were relatively even during the first two quarters but the game quickly got out of hand in the second half and lost 20-0. Tony Pauline reported late Sunday that if the Jags can’t beat the Houston Texans in Week 15, the organization could move on from head coach Urban Meyer.
Jaguars owner Shad Khan is one of the most patient owners in the NFL and has given former coaches more than enough time to implement their vision. Nevertheless, Meyer isn’t showing signs he’s the right man to lead the team. In fact, he’s proving the opposite and you will be hard-pressed to find someone who believes the Jags are better right now than they were at this point last year with Doug Marrone at the helm.
On the days preceeding the Titans game, Tom Pelissero of NFL Media reported Meyer diminished his coaching staff and got in a heated argument with veteran wide receiver Marvin Jones. Pelissero goes on to say that the head coach — not running backs coach Bernie Parmalee — was behind the decision to decrease runnning back James Robinson’s carries.
As bad as the Jaguars’ outing against the Jaguars was, things got worse after the game, when Meyer made a series of puzzling comments.
Jaguars HC Urban Meyer refuted report, says leaking info is ‘garbage’.
One thing Urban Meyer has been consistent about during his tenure in Jacksoville is not holding himself accountable for his actions. Back when he was caught on video with a woman that wasn’t his wife, he said a party tried to convince him into joining them on the dance floor. However, the recording showed a young woman dancing intimately with him.
When questioned why James Robinson’s usage has gone down, he blamed Bernie Parmalee. Thus, it was going to going to be interesting to see how what Meyer would say in regards to Pelissero’s report of him calling his assistants losers. He outright denied it during the media session after the Jaguars’ loss. The head coach says he does have high expectations and can be demanding and described the report as inacurate.
Meyer noted that he did have a conversation with Marvin Jones but it was far from a heated argument. Moreover, the head coach believes their relationship is incredible and says they both had a good laugh after hearing the report.
Nevertheless, Meyer sounded defensive when asked what the team needs to do to turn things around.
"So what’s the answer? Start leaking information or some nonsense? No, no, that’s nonsense. That’s garbage. That’s you know, that’s once again I’ve been very blessed. I’m not really dealt with that. I’ve and I’ve not dealt with well, did you hear what he said? No, let’s improve on offense and get our quarterback in a position to be successful. That’s our focus. What someone’s brother said or someone said someone said that will occupy very little my time and if there is a source, that source is unemployed. I mean within seconds."
It sounds like Meyer wanted to get that one off his chest. He’s right the Jaguars need to focus on improving but they’ve tried that for several months with little to show for. He’s also right coaches need to be held accountable but this isn’t an isolated incident. Over the last three months, reports about him blasting his assistants have surfaced and the noise is going to get louder and the reports will keep coming unless the Jags start winning… or he losses his job.
Urban Meyer doesn’t have answers to Jaguars’ struggles.
A common theme during Urban Meyer’s tenure as the head honcho in Jacksonville is his lack of answers for the team’s struggles and this was on full display after the game.
"You’ve been telling us all year you have faith in the offensive line, they’re getting their [expletive] kicked, what what’s going on there? They’re getting paid a lot of money to be better than what they’ve been."
Keep in mind that was a question but ended up becoming a statement and all Meyer could do was nod and agree. He isn’t being asked about molecular resonance or the currency in Portugal in the 17th century. In previous weeks, when asked bout the team’s performance he will either say, “I don’t know”, or “that’s a good question”. He isn’t being thrown curveballs but things related to football, his area of expertise. You would think that he has the answers but it’s concerning that he doesn’t.
Again, this has been a recurring theme throughout Meyer’s stint at the helm of the Jaguars. Kind of like one time when he confided to Denver Broncos head coach Vic Fangio that the NFL was like ‘playing Alabama every week’. Clearly, he wasn’t prepared for all the challenges he was going to face in the pros.
Make no mistake, Meyer was always going to have growing pains in his transition from college to the NFL. However, you probably expected they would be related to things such as game management, or challenging the right kind of plays. Instead, the head coach has struggled with fundamentals, common sense, and his relationship with the coaching staff. The clock is ticking and he must show something to convince Khan to give him a chance. His job may be safe for now but how much losing can the owner stand?