Jaguars are bringing back to good pieces from the Urban Meyer era

During his short stint as a head coach, Urban Meyer left the Jacksonville Jaguars in a state of disarray. On the other hand, there were a few bright spots, even if they were few and far between. One of them was safeties coach Chris Ash, who's back with the Jags as a scouting assistant.

John Shipley of Sports Illustrated reports that Jacksonville is hiring Chris Ash in a scouting role, noting that this will be his first year in the NFL as a non-coach.

Before joining Meyer's staff in 2021, Ash was a coaching assistant at Rutgers. He became their head coach in 2019 and bolted for Texas as a defensive analyst the following year. The Iowa native was next hired as the Jacksonville safety coach. There, he coached the likes of Andrew Wingard, Andre Cisco, and Daniel Thomas. All three remain with the team.

As noted before, there were a few positives to come out of the Urban Meyer era. For instance, Miller Electric Center was his brainchild. While the embattled head coach failed to put it into practice, he talked about putting players in a position to succeed and giving them the best of the best.

Unfortunately, 2021 was one of the most taxing the Jaguars had to endure. Meyer pulled no punches, berating players and coaches alike. In particular, he called his staff losers, challenging them to compare their resume to his. Similarly, he told players that they wouldn't be able to get a $15 job if they didn't play in the NFL.

And as bad as Meyer was as a head coach, he was probably an even worse leader. After a loss to the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday Night Football, he chose to stay behind instead of flying back with the team because "he wanted to spend time with his grandchildren." It turned out to be a lie, as he was caught on film dancing improperly with a young woman who wasn't his wife.

Things only got worse as the season progressed. The Jaguars had seen enough and fired him in early December 2021, less than a year after hiring him.

Chris Ash was a bright spot for the Jaguars in the Urban Meyer era

All things considered, it's great to see the Jaguars welcome Chris Ash back. While Urban Meyer was a horrible head coach, some (probably most) of his assistants weren't as dreadful as him, with one big exception. And just because Ash was part of his staff, it doesn't mean that he was actively helping him tear down the team.

By bringing back Ash, the Jags are showing that they value talent over past experiences. By virtue of being part of Meyer's staff, he could've been shunned. Instead, he's back because the team thinks he could be an asset in the scouting department.

It's been more than two years since the Jaguars fired Urban Meyer. While they're not looking back, they won't hesitate to salvage the pieces that work if that can help them win.

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