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We may ultimately look back at this weekend as the moment where it became clear that Urban Meyer couldn't return as the Jacksonville Jaguars head coach for a second season.
The Doug Pederson to Jacksonville speculation has begun
Saturday, Tom Pelissero of NFL Media issued a bombshell report about the state of the Jaguars, suggesting that Meyer had previously referred to members of his coaching staff as "losers" and that veteran wide receiver Marvin Jones Jr. left the team briefly because he was so disgusted with the head coach.
In response to this report, the Jaguars lost 20-0 Sunday to the Tennessee Titans. No. 1 overall pick Trevor Lawrence continued what's been a disappointing rookie year, throwing four interceptions in the loss. Running back James Robinson -- whose benching in Week 13 was a point of contention between Meyer and Lawrence -- led the team with six carries for four yards in the shellacking.
After the game, Meyer threatened to fire those who have leaked internal information to the media, should he be able to confirm who did it:
Jaguars coach Urban Meyer on fixing what's wrong: "What's the answer? Starting leaking some information or nonsense? That's garbage. ... If there is a source, then that source is unemployed. I mean, within seconds."
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) December 12, 2021
We don't know the exact length of the contract that Meyer signed to come to the NFL, but owner Shad Khan acknowledged in January that the deal was for "a long time." And now -- whether it comes in the form of a firing or Meyer walking away -- it appears that the college football icon will be one-and-done in the NFL.
If the Jaguars are indeed looking for a new head coach this offseason, they should have a pretty attractive opening. Jacksonville isn't a high-pressure media market. Even if some of the glow on Lawrence has worn off, he was the No. 1 pick less than a year ago for a reason. Robinson and Travis Etienne could form a pretty dominant 1-2 punch in the backfield next season. Over The Cap estimates that they'll have over $70 million in cap space this upcoming offseason. And there's a very real chance that the Jaguars will have the No. 1 pick for the second straight year.
NJ Advance Media's Mike Kaye -- who covers the Eagles, and previously was a beat writer in Jacksonville -- opined Saturday that if the Jaguars and Meyer part ways, former Philadelphia Eagles head coach Doug Pederson would be an excellent replacement. Kaye was just kicking off the conversation, as Pederson trended on Twitter Sunday afternoon after the Jaguars loss.
If Trent Baalke remains in the general manager in Jacksonville, he may have someone in mind to be Meyer's replacement. Remember, Baalke was the general manager in San Francisco from 2011-2016, and has worked in the NFL since the late-1990s, so he has plenty of connections.
But you can be pretty sure that if Meyer departs after just one season, the Jaguars probably won't be hiring a first-time head coach again, and almost certainly won't be picking another candidate from the collegiate ranks.
Pederson would bring legitimacy to Jacksonville, a franchise that badly needs it. He led the Eagles to the playoffs in three of his five seasons in Philadelphia, including guiding the franchise to their first Super Bowl title. In total, the Eagles went 42-37-1 as the Eagles head coach in the regular season, with a 4-2 playoff record. The Jaguars have just seven playoff wins in the history of their relatively young organization.
For as poorly as things finished with the two, Carson Wentz was playing at an NFL MVP level in his second year under the tutelage of Pederson. He has experience developing a young quarterback, and likely has some things he would do differently if given the chance to groom a second top-five pick at the position.
This all assumes that Pederson would be interested in Jacksonville. The 53-year-old could garner interest from multiple franchises this offseason, with the Chicago Bears and Las Vegas Raiders among the teams who could have attractive openings in short order.
But would the Jaguars be wise to give Pederson a call this offseason? Yes. And it would behoove him to answer it as he weighs a second act as a head coach.
RFS69
