Meyer offered apology after firing
JACKSONVILLE — In the wake of his first-season dismissal by the Jacksonville Jaguars and owner Shad Khan, former Florida and Ohio State coach Urban Meyer spoke with Ian Rapoport of NFL. com and apologized to the city.
“I just apologize to Jacksonville,” Meyer said Friday. “I love Jacksonville. It’s one of the reasons I took the job. I still think Shad’s a great owner. It’s heart-breaking. I just had a dream of it becoming a destination place with a new facility he agreed to build and some day to walk into that stadium where it’s standing room only. Because I know how bad the people of Jacksonville want it. So, I’m just heartbroken that we weren’t able to do that. I still believe it’s going to be done. It’s too good of a place.”
The Jaguars (2-12) lost 30-16 at home on Sunday to Houston to move into the lead spot for the No. 1 pick in the 2022 NFL draft after having selected Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence with the No. 1 choice in this year’s draft.
Earlier, a spokesman for Khan told the Associated Press on Friday night that the decision to move on from Meyer was made following Jacksonville’s 20-0 loss at Tennessee last Sunday. A conversation Khan and Meyer had in the locker room after that shutout — Meyer had few answers for the team’s woes or how he planned to fix them — sealed a decision Khan had been mulling for weeks.
“It was determined to wait until the conclusion of previously scheduled appointments that week to make the announcement,” spokesman Jim Woodcock said. “Those appointments included an employee staff luncheon and meeting with Jacksonville media, both to recognize the 10th anniversary of Shad’s purchase of the Jaguars, on Monday as well as NFL meetings in Dallas on December 14 and 15.”
The Jaguars ended up firing Meyer early Thursday, hours after former kicker Josh Lambo accused Meyer of kicking him during an August practice. Connecting that report by Tampa Bay Times, which the Jaguars haven’t disputed, to Khan’s announcement made sense. But the Jaguars insist it was more coincidental than causative.
“The announcement was made at 12:35 a.m. Eastern on Thursday, December 16, to provide coaches and staff alike a fresh start upon reporting to the stadium that morning,” Woodcock said. “Contrary to incorrect assumptions and widespread egregious reporting, the dismissal was not triggered by a single newspaper report late Wednesday afternoon related to a claim made by a former player.
“To repeat from Shad’s official statement, the decision was reached ‘after deliberation over many weeks and a thorough analysis of the entirety of Urban’s tenure with our team.’”
Meyer’s 11-month tenure was filled with mistakes and missteps, none more damning than Meyer staying behind after a game at Cincinnati in late September and getting caught on video acting inappropriately with a woman at a restaurant/ bar.
Khan started attending weekly team meetings following that incident.