Urban Meyer routinely made headlines for the wrong reasons during his lone season with the Jacksonville Jaguars. But because of how much of a mess his stint was, it's easy to forget that the Jags have undergone several rough stretches in the past 20 years. One that isn't discussed nearly enough was the brief Mike Mularkey era.
Both Meyer and Mularkey were dreadful in their own way, but who was truly the worst head coach in team history? You could argue that Doug Marrone also deserves consideration because he was responsible for the Jags' 1-15 record in 2020. However, he at least took Jacksonville to the AFC Championship in 2017, so you can easily make the case that he accomplished more than both of his more underwhelming counterparts.
With that out of the way, here's a look at how the two of them performed during their respective tenures with the Jags.
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The case for Urban Meyer as the worst head coach in Jaguars history
Let's get it out of the way: Urban Meyer didn't get fired because he failed to win, as he claimed during a sitdown with Ian Rapoport of NFL Media following his dismissal. Many head coaches have had a worse record out of the game and have still been given a fair shake to turn things around.
In Meyer's case, he wasn't fit to run an NFL team. In fact, he lied when he said that he had done research before getting the gig. The fact that owner Shad Khan didn't veto him and instead courted him didn't help matters.
Once Meyer took the reins, he proved to be vastly underqualified, not knowing who players such as Aaron Donald were and not knowing which players on his own team got snaps. But it's not just his incompetence that earned him the pink slip.
The embattled head coach didn't fly back with the team after a loss to the Cincinnati Bengals because he said he wanted to spend time with his kids. But he was caught red-handed dancing improperly with a woman who wasn't his wife. He then clumsily apologized, but the damage was done.
The straw that broke the camel's back was that Meyer allegedly kicked kicker Josh Lambo ahead of the game and reportedly referred to him in a derogatory way to motivate him. The incident was simply too much for the team to overlook, and the Alabama legend got kicked to the curb before his lone season in Jacksonville ended.
Urban Meyer's record with the Jags: 2-11
On and off-field incidents: Too many to count
The case for Mike Mularkey as the worst head coach in Jaguars history
Following the end of the Jack Del Rio era, the Jaguars hired Mike Mularkey as their head coach in 2012. The move made sense on paper, as Mularkey helped Matt Ryan become a Pro Bowl quarterback and got the most out of running back Michael "The Burner" Turner during his stint as the offensive coordinator for the Atlanta Falcons in the late 2000s. Similarly, wide receiver Roddy White enjoyed a career revival with him at the helm. However, being a head coach proved to be way out of his range.
During his lone season in Jacksonville, Mularkey routinely mismanaged the roster, giving playing time to rookies Kevin Elliot and Cecil Short III. Similarly, he mishandled injuries to Laurent Robinson and running back Maurice Jones-Drew. Compounding the issue was that he claimed quarterback Chad Henne would compete with Blaine Gabbert, only to backtrack on his comments later.
The fact that Gene Smith, the man that hired him got the boot didn't help matters, and Mularkey was given the boot when David Caldwell became the general manager.
Mike Mularkey's record with the Jaguars: 2-14
On and off-field incidents: None that were deserving of an apology or TMZ worthy
Who comes out on top?
Both Urban Meyer and Mike Mularkey were dreadful but for different reasons. The former had a better record (fewer losses), but that's because he got fired midseason. On the other hand, the latter finished the year, so there's that.
Ultimately, Meyer gets the edge because he raised eyebrows every time he ran his mouth. Similarly, everything he did had the potential to turn into either drama or controversy. In fact, not only was Meyer worse than Mularkey, but he is the worst head coach in NFL history, bar none.