Jaguars exec Tony Khan takes subtle shot at Urban Meyer: ‘Feels very different’

Urban Meyer wasn’t mentioned by name, but he didn’t have to be.

Jaguars executive Tony Khan, the son of team owner Shad Khan, said the vibe around the team has been “very different” since Super Bowl-winning former Eagles coach Doug Pederson was hired to replace Meyer, the college coaching legend who didn’t make it through a full season in Jacksonville before getting canned in December.  

“You can’t force people to respect someone or like someone or want to work with someone,” Khan told Yahoo Sports. “I think at the end of the day, someone needs to do the job on their own merits and the command Doug has of the whole building, respect he has from everybody and the genuine way he conducts himself has gone a really, really long way with a lot of people, including all the staff, everybody around the office and the players.

“It feels very different, in a good way, and very organized and a lot of that is based on the experience of Doug and his staff and the achievements they have in this business, the playoff wins, championship games and Super Bowl rings.”

The 58-year-old Meyer, who since has returned to Fox Sports, was fired by the Jags with a 2-11 record on Dec. 16 of last season after a disastrous tenure. The former Florida and Ohio State coach was accused of kicking former kicker Josh Lambo and treating other players and staff members unprofessionally. He also publicly apologized in October after a viral video emerged of a young woman dancing up against him at his Urban Chophouse restaurant in Columbus, Ohio.

Pederson coached the Eagles to the first Super Bowl championship in franchise history in 2017, but he was fired by Philadelphia following a 4-11-1 campaign in 2020.

The Jaguars finished last season with a 3-14 record, with first-year quarterback Trevor Lawrence – the No. 1 overall pick in the 2021 NFL draft – throwing for 3,641 yards with 12 touchdowns and 17 interceptions over 17 starts.