Urban Meyer seems poised to perpetuate his controversial reputation. Though the Jaguars haven’t yet fired coach Doug Marrone — and haven’t even made the final decision on whether they will fire Marrone, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport — Meyer is lining up a staff with the expectation that he’ll take over in Jacksonville.
That’s problematic on a number of levels.
The first issue is transactional. The Jaguars have to actually fire Marrone before Meyer can begin hiring anyone. It is common for a coach to extend feelers for potential staff member, in the event he lands a job opening. It’s not a great look that Meyer’s efforts are now in the public eye when Marrone is still in place. Meyer couldn’t just — you know — wait a day until the Marrone firing is official? Honestly, that’s just rude.
But then there’s the more substantial problem: The Rooney Rule. NFL teams must interview at least one diverse candidate before they make a decision to hire a coach. Meyer is a white man, and therefore doesn’t fall in that category. If Meyer expects to take the job — and the Jaguars have given him that impression — Jacksonville may have bypassed The Rooney Rule, which the NFL put in place for a league where roughly 70% of players are Black, per NBC News, but where there are just three Black head coaches (Pittsburgh’s Mike Tomlin, L.A.’s Anthony Lynn with the Chargers and Miami’s Brian Flores) and one Latino head coach (Washington’s Ron Rivera).
The NFL has gone through the motions of getting non-white men and women into positions of leadership. But — much like they did with COVID-19 policies — the league’s efforts are hollow. It’s one thing to say they’re doing what they can — it’s another thing for the NFL and its teams to do it. Their “Rule” continues to look like no more that a PR stunt, if Meyer’s hire comes together. It’s all the more disgusting following an offseason when the NFL made a push to emphasize Black voices in the football community amid the nationwide protests for Black Lives Matter.
The Jaguars’ opening may prove to be yet another case study of the failure of the NFL to elevate diverse leadership. With Jacksonville almost definitely set to draft quarterback Trevor Lawrence at No. 1 overall, the Jaguars’ head coaching job will probably be the most desirable vacancy. And it’s unclear if a Black or Latino candidate will even get a shot at it.
For Meyer, a man whose been steeped in controversy — most notably when he failed to report allegations of abuse against his assistant Zach Smith by Smith’s then wife, Courtney — Meyer is not getting things going in the NFL in a new direction. There are reasons to question whether he’s a good hire for an NFL team with his dictatorial coaching style (which generally seems to work only with college players). But the questions about his character aren’t likely to dissipate with this news that he and the Jaguars may have violating league policies on hiring.
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