Urban Meyer Fired by Jacksonville Jaguars

On Dec 16, 2021

The Urban Meyer-to-the-NFL experience didn’t even last one full year.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter is reporting that Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan has fired the former Ohio State head coach, who’s team is just 2-11 this season.

Khan issued the following statement, which was shared by Schefter on social media:

“After deliberation over many weeks and a thorough analysis of the entirety of Urban’s tenure with our team, I am bitterly disappointed to arrive at the conclusion that an immediate change is imperative for everyone. I informed Urban of the change this evening. As I stated in October, regaining our trust and respect was essential. Regrettably, it did not happen.”

“Trent Baalke continues as our general manager and will work with Darrell (Bevell) to ensure that our team will be inspired and competitive while representing Jacksonville proudly over our final four games of the season. In the spirit of closure and recharging our players, staff and fan base, I will not comment further until some point following the conclusion of the NFL season.”

To clarify, Darrell Bevell will serve as the interim head coach of the Jaguars for the remainder of the season.

Meyer signed a 5-year contract in January, 2021 to take over a Jacksonville franchise that was desperate for better leadership. But his tenure was filled with repeated distractions on and off the field.

From hiring and firing former Iowa strength and conditioning coach Chris Doyle, to an October 1st video that leaked of Meyer acting inappropriately with a young woman at a Columbus-area bar after not flying back home with the team, to more recent issues with his conduct around his players, it’s hard to find many good things to say about Meyer’s time with Jacksonville. Frankly, it’s been hard to keep track of it all because it feels like every week something new is coming to light.

The latest story to come out came from former kicker Josh Lambo, alleging that Meyer physically kicked him at practice after he missed a couple of kicks during the preseason. That was apparently the final breaking point for Shad Khan, who certainly feels embarrassed given the way this entire situation has unfolded over the last 12 months.