With the 2021 season now officially in the books, the Jaguars turn their attention to the offseason. First on the docket is the search to replace Urban Meyer as head coach, which has been underway for several weeks now as a result of the new NFL rule allowing teams to begin interviewing candidates up to two weeks before the end of the regular season.
The list of reported interviewees is long and contains both experienced head coaches and up-and-coming coordinators, but one name that will reportedly be added to that list is the man currently running the show, interim head coach Darrell Bevell.
Bevell was put in a tough spot after the Jags fired Meyer, and he won just one game guiding the team through the final four weeks of the season. But that win was certainly a big one, as Jacksonville upset the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday to help knock them out of the playoff race despite being massive underdogs.
Though that win won’t do much for the franchise in the long run, it seems it was enough to secure an interview for Bevell, who told the media on Monday that he will have the chance to plead his case for the full-time job.
Jaguars interim coach Darrell Bevell says GM Trent Baalke spoke to him this morning and said owner Shad Khan would like him to interview
— Mark Long (@APMarkLong) January 10, 2022
Before Jags fans get too concerned, this is likely mostly a formality. Interim coaches getting a chance to interview for the permanent position is fairly common, and it makes sense that Bevell, an experienced NFL coordinator who has been an interim before, would get that opportunity.
However, the Jags have cast a very wide net for this search, and it seems unlikely that they will choose to go with someone who was a member of a dysfunctional staff in 2021 and whose offense seemed to regress down the stretch of the season.
The Jaguars will probably try to get this hire done soon to make sure they get the most out of the decision to fire Meyer mid-season, as they will now be competing with several other openings. Those openings include vacancies in Minnesota, Denver, Chicago, and Miami, all of which made coaching changes following Week 18.