In hindsight, Pederson told me, winning a championship had probably covered up a lot of “negativity” that lingered under the surface, and losing laid it bare. The former Eagles coach had been fired in Philadelphia at the end of the 2020 season, a disappointing campaign in which a team three years removed from its first Super Bowl championship in franchise history, with the core of the roster mostly intact, finished last in one of the NFL’s weakest divisions.
The Jaguars were suddenly in need of a replacement who would bring credibility to the locker room and improve morale.Īfter a protracted, two-month coaching search, the Jaguars hired Pederson, who in 2021 spent a year away from football for the first time since he was in high school. Meyer was fired in December with more losses to his name in Jacksonville than he had in seven seasons coaching Ohio State. The Jaguars went 3-14 and finished last in the NFL in scoring. “I pride myself on just taking everything-I internalize everything and I put it all right back on me, and eventually that weighs you down and you need to take a break.” -Doug PedersonĪnd, of course, there was the incident after the Jaguars’ loss to the Bengals in September when Meyer declined to travel home with the team and instead went to his own steakhouse in Columbus, where he was videotaped dancing with an anonymous woman who was not his wife, Shelley. On multiple occasions, he was woefully mistaken about basic facts of what was happening with his team: He once claimed rookie safety Andre Cisco was getting more playing time after a game in which Cisco did not play a single defensive snap, and on at least two other occasions responded to questions about the lack of snaps given to running back James Robinson, the team’s only consistently efficient offensive player in 2021, by saying that it wasn’t his job to “micromanage who is in the game.” Meyer was mocked after then-Broncos coach Vic Fangio revealed that an amazed Meyer in Week 2 had told him that every week in the NFL “is like playing Alabama.” Former kicker Josh Lambo, who is currently suing the Jaguars for back pay and damages related to emotional distress from the hostile work environment created during the 2021 season, said that Meyer kicked him in the leg at a practice. During the regular season, Meyer repeatedly berated his assistants, calling them “losers” and threatening to fire them. He briefly hired Chris Doyle, the disgraced former Iowa strength coach who multiple former players said had made racist comments and bullied them during his tenure.
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He tried to run the full playbook during the preseason. He violated the league’s non-contact rules during offseason workouts, resulting in fines for himself and the team and lost practice time in 2022.
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Meyer had demonstrated a shocking lack of fluency with how the NFL works, complaining about free agency costing money and giving players choices. Things went downhill from there, and fast. This would probably be a good time to offer a brief synopsis of the 2021 Jaguars season: The Jaguars drafted Trevor Lawrence, considered a generational prospect at quarterback, with the no. “I think it is a happy place.”Īnother part of that, of course, is that this is not just about Pederson, but about the man he is replacing, Urban Meyer.
“I don’t think it feels like it,” veteran receiver Marvin Jones corrected. It’s part of what made Jaguars camp feel like a remarkably happy place, which may even be understating it. (In another critical difference, he’s coached this sport before.) But he’s got an energy that, even after a long practice in 90-degree heat, seems to have rubbed off on his team. Pederson shares a sweet tooth and a good attitude with the Jason Sudeikis character, but he’s somewhat more intense and significantly less hokey. “I wouldn’t go that far,” receiver Christian Kirk told me. A few Jaguars players, though, talked me out of it. The geniality of all this tempted me, watching from a nearby sideline, to make a Ted Lasso reference.
He stopped at the edge of the grass to help himself from a bin of orange slices-yes, like at a kid’s soccer practice. Doug Pederson bounded off the field after the second practice of Jacksonville Jaguars training camp.
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