A Tuesday report from an NFL insider suggests that Jacksonville Jaguars players are souring on Head Coach Urban Meyer’s style.
CBS Sports Lead NFL writer Pete Prisco told Damon Amendolara on “The DA Show” that the Jags’ rough start has upset Meyer, and disgruntled some players. The Jaguars lost their second preseason game to the New Orleans Saints Monday, 23-21, after losing to the Cleveland Browns earlier in August, 23-13.
“He clearly does not like losing, even if it’s in the preseason,” Prisco said. “I heard he had a rough go of it last week just because he lost his first preseason game, and that’s not an attitude that you need to have in the NFL.” (RELATED: Tampa Bay Buccaneers Players Won’t Be Allowed To Leave The Team Hotel Because Of Coronavirus)
Prisco reported that Meyer carried over a number of practices from his college days that haven’t transitioned well in his opinion, and that “some of the players aren’t thrilled with them, either.” He pointed to a particular example when an assistant coach with a microphone allegedly told players to “hydrate, hustle and get to the next series.” He also reported that Meyer has made significant changes to the Jaguars’ practice facility, such as adding cryotherapy chambers, as well as the largest coaching staff in the league, including stretching coaches for every position group.
.@PriscoCBS: Some #Jaguars players ‘aren’t thrilled’ with new head coach Urban Meyer | @DAonCBS
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“The team has gone above and beyond what he has requested,” Prisco said, adding that it was incumbent on Meyer to start winning. However, Prisco reported that the “offense is a disaster right now … They have no idea what they’re doing.” Meyer had criticized the Jaguars’ offense after they generated just 85 yards of total offense in the first half of their game against the Browns.
Prisco did not fault Meyer, whom he called a “work in progress,” saying that building a winning program is much harder than simply grabbing up top recruits. But he was clear that Jacksonville is going through growing pains.
“They have problems, but they have a week to fix them and a couple of weeks before the start of the regular season. But right now they do not look very good,” Prisco reported.
After Jacksonville’s loss Monday, fans took to Twitter and slammed Meyer. Users noted that the head coach looked visibly unhappy with his team’s performance.
Meanwhile, the Jaguars announced Wednesday that Trevor Lawrence officially earned the number one quarterback job ahead of Gardner Minshew.