Urban Meyer's knowledge of NFL stars while coaching Jaguars scrutinized in report

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Urban Meyer’s short time with the Jacksonville Jaguars was detailed in a new report Monday, and his alleged lack of knowledge about certain NFL stars perplexed social media.

The Jaguars hired Meyer in January 2021 to lead the team into the next era along with their eventual top draft pick, quarterback Trevor Lawrence. However, his tenure was plagued by several controversies, and in the end he wasn’t able to finish the full season and the Jaguars let him go.

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The Los Angeles Rams' Aaron Donald holds the George Halas Trophy after the NFC Championship NFL football game against the San Francisco 49ers Sunday, Jan. 30, 2022, in Inglewood, California. The Rams won 20-17 to advance to the Super Bowl. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

According to The Athletic, Meyer didn’t know who some of the top stars were.

Jacksonville faced off against the Los Angeles Rams, San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks, and Meyer reportedly wasn’t familiar with Aaron Donald, Deebo Samuel or Jamal Adams.

"Who's this 99 guy on the Rams?" Meyer reportedly asked one of the Jaguars staffers. "I'm hearing he might be a problem for us."

Another member of the Jaguars staff told The Athletic: "The most toxic environment I've ever been a part of. By far. Not even close."

The report had social media stunned.

In the closing months of his time with Jacksonville, Meyer reportedly had an incident with kicker Josh Lambo in training camp when he kicked the veteran. In the middle of the season, Meyer was spotted at an Ohio bar alongside a woman who was dancing near his lap. He was also reported to have an incident with wide receiver Marvin Jones and called his assistants losers.

Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Urban Meyer on the sidelines against the Tennessee Titans during the second half Dec. 12, 2021, at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee. (Steve Roberts-USA TODAY Sports)

He broke his silence on his dismissal in December in an interview with NFL.com.

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"I just apologize to Jacksonville. I love Jacksonville. It's one of the reasons I took the job. I still think Shad [Khan's] a great owner. It's heart-breaking," Meyer said. 

"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."

Meyer said he was "devastated" by his dismissal and denied the allegations that came to light in the days before his firing. He said the reported argument between him and Jones was not accurately portrayed, denied calling his assistants losers and denied the alleged kicking incident with Lambo ever happened.

Jacksonville was 2-11 before Meyer was fired. He said he thought the team was going to hit its stride with four games left.

Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Urban Meyer before the game against the Tennessee Titans on Dec. 12, 2021, at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee.  (Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports)

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"I go back to the last game we played, and man, our defense kept going," Meyer told NFL.com. "And going. And our locker room was great and they kept just pushing and pushing and people kept going and not complaining. I really felt still in my heart once we get this … my gosh we hadn't scored more than a touchdown in five weeks or whatever. Once we get this organized, we could flip this thing. I mean this year. Man. And I don't believe in blaming players, I don't believe in that. I was really disappointed."