Urban Meyer turmoil: Jaguars owner Shad Khan won’t act ‘helter-skelter on emotion’ about coach’s future

The Jacksonville Jaguars weren’t expected to compete for a Lombardi trophy in 2021, but things have gone much worse than anticipated. The 2-11 Jags were officially eliminated from playoff contention this past week while a troubling report from CBS Sports NFL Insider Jason La Canfora centered around first-year head coach Urban Meyer dominated headlines — with more unflattering news potentially on the way.

Despite the lack of success on the field and deafening noise off of it, Jaguars owner Shad Khan recently told reporters that he won’t be impulsive when it comes to Meyer’s future by “just acting helter-skelter on emotion.”

“What concerns me is obviously wins and losses,” Khan said, via the Associated Press. “But, hey, we’re sitting here, we haven’t had a lot of wins. What’s different about this thing is you have losses and you have drama. In the past, it was like, you were, ‘It’s like the lowly Jaguars’ and everyone left you alone. Now, the scrutiny we have is really something different.

“So how much of that is we’re bringing it upon ourselves or how much of that is deserved? In this case, Urban, he won wherever he was. This is something he’s never dealt with. And when you win in football, you create enemies. The only way you can really deal with that is you got to win again. I wish there was a panacea.”

The Jaguars fell to the Tennessee Titans this past Sunday, 20-0. According to the AP, it was the first time Jacksonville had been shut out in Khan’s 10 years of ownership. On Saturday, NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero reported that Meyer recently had multiple run-ins with players and other coaches on his staff. He reportedly delivered a harsh message in a team meeting saying that he’s a winner and that his assistant coaches are losers, and challenged them to defend their resumes. Pelissero also reported that Meyer had a heated argument with wide receiver Marvin Jones, something the head coach has denied multiple times. 

Meyer has found himself in the middle of controversy more often than not during his first NFL season. There was of course his activity in an Ohio bar during the Jags’ bye week, the NFLPA launched an investigation into him saying vaccination status played a role in his decisions on cut day, he made a controversial hire in Chris Doyle that lasted just a couple days and Sports Illustrated’s Michael Silver reported in October that Meyer has zero credibility in the locker room, and had very little to begin with.

All of this has led many to believe that Meyer could be a one-and-done, but it doesn’t sound like Khan will be quick on the trigger. During his conversation with reporters, he brought up that he gave former head coaches Gus Bradley and Doug Marrone about four years apiece to prove themselves. Still, Khan said a four-year rebuild was “absolutely a trap I don’t believe falling in,” and believes that his roster is much better than the record indicates. 

“I think we have a history of looking at the facts and doing the right thing,” Khan said. “Wins and losses, this is a little bit different. I’m going to reflect on all of that and do what’s the right thing for the team and the right thing for the city.”