Urban Meyer appears to have completely lost the backing of players and even staff as the losses mount for the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Tensions have boiled over between Meyer and his players and staff, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com. Meyer’s style has led to clashes with numerous members of the roster, with detractors viewing him as condescending.
Meyer has reportedly had three notable run-ins with players and staff in the last two weeks alone. At one point, veteran wide receiver Marvin Jones became so angry with Meyer’s criticism of the receiver group that he stormed out of practice and left the team facility after an argument with Meyer and had to be coaxed back by assistant coaches. Meyer also challenged his assistant coaches during a meeting, calling them “losers” and challenging them to explain what they have ever won.
Contrary to Meyer’s public denials, it was the head coach who benched running back James Robinson after a fumble in last week’s loss to the Rams, Pelissero says. Meyer prevented Robinson from re-entering the game until he was confronted on the sideline by quarterback Trevor Lawrence about Robinson’s benching. Lawrence publicly questioned his coaches over the benching after the game.
Jaguars players openly vented to Rams players after that loss, with the common complaint being that Meyer simply does not treat them like adults.
All of this comes after Meyer’s embarrassing viral video incident following a Week 4 loss to Cincinnati. Even then, there was talk that he had lost the locker room. His methods that worked in college are not translating to the NFL, and he has not adapted despite a 2-10 record and ongoing issues with players.
By all accounts, Meyer remains committed to seeing things through with the Jaguars. However, it is becoming clear that he is unaccustomed to this much losing and unwilling to adapt his methods to NFL players. Those factors may ensure a very short tenure in Jacksonville at this rate.
Photo: Joseph Maiorana-USA Today Sports
