Category: Urban Meyer

Urban Meyer says there is ‘zero chance’ of him leaving the NFL prematurely

The new Jags coach may not have the best track record of sticking around, but he says he knows what he’s getting himself into.

One of the primary criticisms the Jacksonville Jaguars have faced for hiring Urban Meyer as their head coach is his track record for not sticking around. His two-year stints as the head coach at Bowling Green State and Utah are understandable, as he received better jobs at the end of those tenures, but he left his post at Florida just two years removed from a national title for health reasons before returning to the coaching scene after just one season away from it.

He spent seven seasons at Ohio State after that, but he retired from coaching following the 2018 season. Now, not only is Meyer unretired, but he’s trying his hand at the professional ranks with no prior experience as even an assistant at the professional level.

Because of this, it’s not exactly unfair to question whether Meyer’s in it for the long haul. In his 30-minute-plus interview with NBC Sports’ Peter King, Meyer addressed a wide variety of topics (including the team’s plans with the first overall pick), but he also tackled these concerns head-on.

Specifically, King asked him about Alabama coach Nick Saban’s experience coaching in the NFL. After winning a national title as the head coach at LSU, Saban took the Miami Dolphins coaching job, a post he held for just two seasons before returning to the college ranks with the Crimson Tide.

However, Meyer quickly dismissed the possibility of him darting back to the college game so soon.

“Zero chance of that happening,” Meyer said. “What coach Saban went through, I don’t know. That’s coach Saban’s business. It’s completely different, my mind is set. There’s going to be some losses show up here that we’re not used to, and to say that’s going to be easy, no, that’s going to be miserable. I hate losing, and we all do. But the reality is that you’re going to lose. Hopefully, you win more than you lose, but that’s something that’s going to be new to me. I have to get my mind right, and I’m working on that.”

While Meyer likely didn’t plan to leave his previous jobs before he did, it should be at least slightly encouraging for Jags fans to see that he seems to know what he’s getting himself into. And though no transcendent college coach since Saban has attempted the foray into the NFL, Meyer hopes that he can set a new standard for college coaches translating to the professional game.

Urban Meyer says Jags heading in “the direction” of taking Trevor Lawrence

Selecting the former Clemson passer certainly wouldn’t be a surprise, but Jags coach Urban Meyer implied the team will do just that.

When it comes to the NFL Draft, teams don’t want to overplay their hand. But for those who’ve had the opportunity to possess the top selection, there is the luxury to avoid some of that secrecy. This was likely the rationale behind Jacksonville Jaguars coach Urban Meyer offering some rare candor about the team’s draft strategy.

Speaking to NBC Sports’ Peter King, Meyer provided some good news for Jacksonville fans eagerly hoping the team selects former Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence with the first pick.

“I’d have to say that’s the direction we’re going,” Meyer said about the prospect of drafting Lawrence. “I’ll leave that up to the owner when we make that decision official. But I’m certainly not stepping out of line that that’s certainly the direction we’re headed.”

Though the Jags taking Lawrence would be far from a surprise, Meyer seemed to confirm here that the team has no intentions of deviating from the plan. Even before this season, Lawrence was widely regarded as the best player in college, and it seems Meyer paid close attention to him during his time at the desk with Fox Sports. 

This year, Lawrence is considered to be the top quarterback in the class for the most part, though several scouts prefer BYU’s Zach Wilson. But the Jaguars have not indicated that they share this evaluation, and if the first pick in next month’s draft is used to select anyone other than Lawrence, it would be a fairly major upset.

Jags OC Darrell Bevell attends Zach Wilson’s pro day, Urban Meyer not present

The Jaguars offensive coordinator was on hand for former BYU quarterback Zach Wilson’s pro day, but the Jags head coach was not.

Just because a team is fairly sure what they want to do with the first overall pick doesn’t mean they won’t do their due diligence. It seems that’s exactly what happened on Friday morning, as Jacksonville Jaguars offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell attended Zach Wilson’s pro day in Provo, Utah.

Notably, however, Jacksonville’s head coach Urban Meyer was not in attendance. That’s a bit surprising, as one would assume the man leading the team would want to be on hand to watch a potential franchise quarterback in action.

Meyer also didn’t attend the pro day for North Dakota State quarterback Trey Lance earlier this month. He was, however, in attendance for former Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence’s pro day, and he helped him coordinate an earlier pro day to accommodate his shoulder surgery.

Given these indicators, it doesn’t seem anything has changed regarding the Jags’ plans with the first overall pick. Though some analysts seem to prefer Wilson over Lawrence, there’s no reason to think the Jags’ staff feels that way.

But that doesn’t mean the team won’t scout the rest of the field, and considering the fact that, according to Albert Breer, Bevell has a house close to BYU (where his daughter attends school), there doesn’t seem to be much here that should worry fans who want Lawrence.

Jamal Agnew ready to be a leader in receiver room, on special teams

The former Lions receiver is surrounded with some familiar faces on his new team, and he’s ready to contribute in 2021.

One of the less-discussed but potentially intriguing pickups of the Jacksonville Jaguars’ 2021 free agency class was former Detroit Lions receiver and return specialist Jamal Agnew. A former fifth-round pick in 2017 from non-scholarship San Diego, Agnew has become an underrated utility player.

Starting his career as a cornerback with a special teams focus, Agnew ditched the defense to become a full-time receiver before the 2020 season. That led to his most productive year on offense, by far, totaling 13 catches for 89 yards on the season.

The coach who helped him make that transition, offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell, now holds the same role in Jacksonville. This week, Agnew told the media he’s coming into Jacksonville with a high comfort level towards the offense and feels his best is yet to come as a receiver in it.

“To be honest, it was a lot easier than I thought it was going to be, just playing defense my whole life and transitioning to offense so suddenly,” he said. “But [Offensive Coordinator] Darrell Bevell and even the receivers coach back in Detroit, they made it so much easier for my transition and I’m happy I did it to be honest. I feel like I get to use my skill set a lot more on the offensive side of the ball and it’s just more opportunities to make plays… That was one of the main reasons why I chose Jacksonville was because I got to pick up where I left off with Bevell because I felt like I was just getting started.”

Though he’s a bit new to being an offensive player full-time, Agnew said he’s excited for the opportunity to help a young quarterback and receiving corps. He said his familiarity with both Bevell’s offense and new addition Marvin Jones, who played with Agnew in Detroit, should be beneficial for the still-improving group.

“So, now I’m very comfortable for some of the younger guys to lean on me.” Agnew said. “I feel like I have a really good grasp of the offense, but I’m excited for this opportunity to work with a young quarterback. Especially to work with Marvin again, he’s a great player, even better person off the field. He’s a great father, he’s just a great role model and I was so grateful to learn from him these past four years.”

Though he could figure into the Jags’ offensive game plan to some degree, the bulk of Agnew’s production as a pro has come on special teams. He’s been one of the NFL’s best return men over the last few years, though he’s struggled to match his production as a rookie. That season he totaled 447 punt returns yards and two touchdowns, bringing home First-Team All-Pro honors in the process.

Though he had just 178 punt return yards and a touchdown in 2020, he emerged to have his best season on kick returns, taking 28 for 783 yards (both career highs).

Like many players on the Jags’ roster, Agnew said he’s excited to play for Meyer, a coach who understands what elite special teams players can bring to the table. Skilled returners are a staple of Meyer’s teams, as evidenced by players like Brandon James and Chris Rainey when he coached at Florida. In securing one of the league’s best special teams players, it’s clear he’s working on a similar vision in Jacksonville.

And if Agnew’s to be believed, the Jaguars’ first opponent may be best served sending the opening kick of the season away from him.

“It definitely means a lot to me just to know my skill set is being valued as it is,” Agnew said. “I feel like special teams is a very important aspect of the game and you don’t really realize that until something catastrophic happens. But I want to come in and be that spark. I want to bring the juice. I want to create energy plays, spark plays. I love doing that, that stuff’s fun to me. It was kind of weird last year without fans. I’m running a big return back and it’s kind of quiet so it’s just like what’s going on? But I’m here, we’re going to have 100 percent capacity, so I can’t wait to house call that first one in this stadium.”

Return to Jags feels like a homecoming for Carlos Hyde

The former Seattle running back had relationships with a number of people on staff, and he called signing with the Jags a “no-brainer.”

Running back Carlos Hyde, one of several free-agent additions for the Jacksonville Jaguars this offseason, played one season of his career with the team in 2018. But with the new regime, Jacksonville now feels more like home than ever.

Hyde has a prior relationship with several people within the Jags staff, but the most obvious connection is the head coach. Urban Meyer was Hyde’s college coach at Ohio State, where he guided him to a First Team All-Big Ten selection in 2013.

Hyde said that when his contract with Seattle expired, the move he needed to make was obvious.

“It was a no-brainer for me once I saw Coach [Urban] Meyer become the head coach here,” he said. “I had good years with Coach Meyer at Ohio State and honestly, I’ve been waiting for Coach Meyer to become a head coach in the NFL… I feel like eventually, he would have made his way to the NFL. I’m happy he decided to do that now, while I’m still playing. I’m excited that he’s here now.”

Meyer has no NFL coaching experience, even as an assistant coach. But Hyde said he’s not worried about Meyer’s ability to make the transition.

“Because one thing about Coach Meyer, it’s all about winning,” Hyde said. “So, he’s just going to figure it out, how to get the wins, how to consistently get wins, how to get a lot of wins, to build a winning program here, build the right culture, get the right guys in here… When he’s not around, you know you’ve got guys here in there that he can count on that are keeping the culture alive, keeping guys bought in into the program.”

Not only is Hyde extremely familiar with Meyer and his coaching style, but with the Jaguars in 2021, he will be able to maintain some systematic continuity. His offensive coordinator from last season with the Seahawks, Brian Schottenheimer, was hired to be the Jags’ passing game coordinator.

“…it’s a good thing for me, you know a familiar face,” Hyde said. “I’m sure the offense will be familiar, I’m sure [coach Schottenheimer will] [be] adding something familiar, what we did in Seattle. But you know, it’s good to see familiar faces. Schotty has been great, he’s definitely going to help me continue to be the player I am, come in and just handle my business.”

If that weren’t enough to convince Hyde to sign with the Jags, their new general manager, Trent Baalke, held the same role with the San Francisco 49ers for Hyde’s first three years with the team from 2014-16. He’s now back with the GM that drafted him in the second round back in 2014.

“Trent [and I] had a good relationship,” he said. “I haven’t seen him in a while. We always kept in contact through somebody, there was always a middleman telling me, ‘Trent said hello,’ and I’d tell the person back, ‘Well, you tell him—.’ It’s finally good to see him though, in-person and be back around him. I had a good time with Trent also when I was in San Fran.”

When asked which of those three connections was the main catalyst behind his decision to come to Jacksonville, Hyde didn’t hesitate to answer.

“It was Coach Meyer. Coach Meyer made it all happen,” he said. “Once I saw Coach Meyer become the head coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars, I already knew where I was going.”

The 30-year-old will hope familiarity leads to success as he joins last year’s starter James Robinson in a backfield that should be one of the league’s better units in 2021.

Urban Meyer: NFL free agency system is ‘not good business’

The new Jags coach isn’t a fan of negotiating with and signing players he hasn’t met in-person before, and he voiced that opinion on Friday.

He’s only been an NFL head coach for a couple months now, but new Jacksonville Jaguars head man Urban Meyer hasn’t shied away from criticizing the league’s system. He didn’t like the way free agency operates, especially when it comes to the legal tampering period. Before the start of the new league year, teams have just two days to negotiate contracts with players. Because of this, deals must be struck remotely without the two parties actually meeting.

At his press conference on Friday morning, Meyer said he’s not a fan of negotiating with and signing players without having ever met them.

“Yeah, that was awful,” Meyer said. “I don’t agree with it, but no one asked my opinion. I guess in the old days you could bring them in and meet them, have dinner with them, you find out the football intellect, find out their character. The thing you don’t [do], I found out, is call someone who has skin in the game because they’re going to not quite — I don’t see honest as a very appropriate [word]. So we did a deep dive. Every guy that we signed, we did.

“To answer your question, that was awful, and I don’t believe it should be that way. Not when you’re making organizational decisions. I’m not sure how that rule came about, but to me that’s not good business.”

Meyer compared the free agency process with recruiting at the college level, illustrating the differences between the two. Namely, the fact that contracts and cap space severely limits which players you can target. Meyer was a stellar recruiter in college at both Florida and Ohio State, but he’s still trying to figure out how to translate that to the professional level.

“In recruiting we would have our recruiting meeting and identify the best players and say go get them,” Meyer said. “And, then all of a sudden I start finding out this guy cost $28 million and this guy costs … I knew it, to say I didn’t know it, of course I knew it, but just the way you put that puzzle together about here’s your cap space, here’s your choices, can we take him but we get three of these guys to help. And so I imagine once you build your roster exactly the way you want it, then you can take one guy and go get that $25 million athlete.

“We’re not in position to do that right now. We’re just not. So it was a learning experience, and I feel great about it.”

It’s good for the Jags that the new staff learned from its first free agency, though it didn’t result in any of the splashy signings the fanbase may have hoped for. Meyer and Co. had a clear approach, and whether or not that approach works out largely depends on next month’s NFL Draft.

Urban Meyer likes where Jags’ CB group is after free agent additions

The Jaguars coach is happy with the moves the team made in the secondary, specifically at the cornerback position.

As much as Jacksonville struggled defensively last season, it’s not a surprise that the team was aggressive in addressing that side of the ball in free agency. Looking at the cornerback group specifically, the team drafted C.J. Henderson ninth overall last season, and though he looked promising before injuries ended his rookie campaign, it was clear that the position needed to be addressed this offseason.

In addition to re-signing corners Sidney Jones IV and Tre Herndon, the team added Shaquill Griffin from Seattle on a big deal, and he will likely line up opposite Henderson in 2021.

When asked about the group Friday, coach Urban Meyer said he’s pleased.

“…so we have three guys that we feel are [great],” he said. “One was a second-rounder [CB Sidney Jones IV], but obviously Shaq[uill Griffin], we feel very strong about. CJ has gone through his labrum surgery and he’s doing very well. Tre Herndon is another guy that has done some very good things here. I really like his competitiveness.

“So, I really like where we’re at with the four corners and that was obviously after d-line, that’s right where we went was to go fix the corner position.”

In addition to Griffin, the Jags helped out their safety group with the addition of Rayshawn Jenkins from the Chargers. They’ll hope that these moves are enough to noticeably improve the unit, which ranked sixth-worst in the NFL in passing defense in 2020.

Urban Meyer says Jags aren’t looking to trade QB Gardner Minshew ‘at this point’

While many quarterbacks are on the move in the NFL, it appears Gardner Minshew will be staying put with the Jaguars — at least for now.

The NFL is going through a lot of movement when it comes to quarterbacks this season as several teams will start new names under center, and others will be acquiring notable backups. The Jacksonville Jaguars have found themselves in these discussions, not just because they are likely to draft Trevor Lawrence, but because a report surfaced that teams had been calling about Gardner Minshew II.

However, despite those calls, the Jags appear to have Minshew in their plans for now. On Friday morning, coach Urban Meyer told the media that the team wasn’t fielding calls for the third-year player, who he had the chance to meet with this week.

“At this point, no. At this point, I know Gardner [Minshew II] a little bit,” Meyer said. “He came in yesterday; we had a good visit. That’s the second time I spent time with him. This is all kind of new to me. I’m used to spending about five, six hours a day with our quarterback. January, February, that’s the days you get your quarterback ready to go. You can’t do that in the NFL. There’s a lot of anticipation about the first pick.

“I understand there’s a lot of conversation out there, but there’s been no decisions made. Gardner’s done some very good things here in Jacksonville and he’s a competitive maniac, which I really appreciate that about him. So, there’s been no decisions made. Yesterday was the first lengthy meeting we had and we’re going to continue that here for the next few weeks.”

While things could change in terms of the Jags’ stance on Minshew (especially if they get Alex Smith), keeping him on the roster for the regular season would give them an experienced backup. The 2019 sixth-round selection has seen a lot of time on the field as a starter (20 games). Most of those starts came as a rookie (12) and eight occurred last season.

Minshew will enter this season with a 7-13 record as a starter. Statistically, he’s registered a completion rate of 62.9% (501-of-797) while passing for 5,530 yards, 37 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions. His rookie campaign, in particular, appears to be what caught the eyes of scouts around the league. With that being the case, other organizations will likely continue to monitor the situation, though the Jags aren’t actively shopping Minshew.

Watch: Jags ‘The Hunt’ series begins by previewing vision of Meyer, Baalke for team

The Jags media team begins their video series entitled “The Hunt,” which will give fans an insider preview of the front office’s rebuild.

The Jacksonville Jaguars are coming up on a very important time in the team’s history and those who work in the front office know it. New coach Urban Meyer has said this himself on many occasions and will be leading the way in terms of mapping out the plan for the Jags to be successful again. Of course, it won’t be easy and is going to take a lot of work, which is why the team will be using a new video series entitled “The Hunt” to give the fans a preview of the front office’s journey.

With free agency set to begin Wednesday, the team released its first episode for the 2021 season this week. In it, Meyer discussed his vision and how he will build up the team to be the winner that Duval deserves. The media crew also followed him to Clemson as the Jags scouted Trevor Lawrence at his pro day.

The series also focused on new general manager Trent Baalke and his team’s process of looking for talent. As many are aware, he will be helping Meyer make the call with the first overall pick (probably on Lawrence) and also will be assisting him on his rookie season throughout the NFL which will come with many hurdles.

https://youtu.be/5bvz6b8WGXo

Urban Meyer discusses thought process of adding his former players to Jags’ roster

The tampering period is almost here and Urban Meyer is ready for the process, which could lead to him reuniting with some familiar faces.

The Jacksonville Jaguars have a busy week ahead of them. The NFL’s tampering period will begin on Monday, which allows teams to negotiate with the agents of players who are on the open market.

With the Jags signing former Ohio State and Florida coach Urban Meyer, many have speculated that some of his former college players could join him in the pros. When looking at the list of names like Alex Smith, Joe Hayden, Janoris Jenkins, Curtis Samuel, and many others, there are a variety of names Meyer is familiar with who can help the Jags after going 1-15 in 2020.

The media asked Meyer about the potential of bringing in his former players at The Players Championship golf tournament Friday. He broke down some key elements that will play into those decisions, which is the insight his assistants can provide and whether they would be a fit for their respective groups.

“I’m waking up in the middle of the night staring at the ceiling trying to put this … all of us are trying to put this thing together,” Meyer said. “You just look at the history, which I have, just looking through the history of the NFL, how many chances do you get to build a roster like we are? You have cap space, 11 draft picks. You can’t screw it up, man. You got to get the right people…”

Ultimately [our assistant coaches] are in charge of who goes in their room. You mentioned Janoris [Jenkins] and Raekwon McMillan, I got a bunch of former players out there who I would love to get, but I got to make sure they fit in that room.”

When putting his staff together, Meyer did a good job of mixing NFL assistants with college assistants. His three coordinators, Joe Cullen, Darrell Bevell, and Brian Schneider, have all been in the NFL for at least 13 years. Meyer will have heavy discussions with them in particular in terms of his former players, and after putting their minds together, they should all be able to come up with a solid answer.

As for the players Meyer mentioned in particular on Friday, it feels like Jenkins has the highest probability to end up with the Jags. He was cut by the New Orleans Saints this week, which gives the Jags a chance to add a player into their young secondary who has been in the NFL nine seasons. Jenkins, who was a former second-round pick for the St. Louis Rams, has started in 125 games, a mark nobody in the secondary comes close to.

At the same time, Jenkins is 32 years of age, and the Jags could find a younger option on the market, although they may not know Meyer. With them leading the NFL in cap space, they could sign a player like William Jackson III, who is not only a younger player but a better one in the eyes of most.

Raekwon McMillan, who played for Meyer at Ohio State, might be even less of a fit. With the Jags set to start Myles Jack and Joe Schobert as interior linebackers, a team could give McMillan more snaps than the Jags could because he’s only 25 years of age. However, if he wanted to try another linebacker position and is fine with a rotation, there may be a spot for him with the Jags.

Ultimately, we’ll have to play the waiting game to see what Meyer is cooking up in terms of reunions. There are several of his former players who would be great to help the team improve while also providing experience, both of which are things the Jags desperately need.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Agv-0ARoRU