What Are the Odds: Jaguars Coaching Odds Officially Taken Off Board
Last week, we went over the newly released odds on who the Jacksonville Jaguars next head coach would be.
Now, the odds for the Jaguars' job have officially been taken off the board with BetOnline, a result of Urban Meyer closing in on the job. It has already been heavily implied that Meyer has all but taken the job, and it appears oddsmakers are calling the fight as well.
Multiple reports have stated the Jaguars and Meyer are close to striking a deal, and Meyer has already been spotted in Jacksonville on Thursday. Unless he likes the golf courses that much, safe to assume that means the only reason he has yet to be named head coach is due to formalities.
Meyer has long been the favorite to be named the Jaguars next head coach, even if the process took a bit longer than some may have thought it would. Meyer was BetOnline's runaway favorite for the job earlier this month, and it is little surprise Jaguars owner Shad Khan is going for a big splash with a coach he admittedly has a prior relationship with due to each's affiliation with the Big 10.
Khan fired former Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone last Monday, one day after the end of the 2020 season. Marrone finished his four-year Jaguars tenure with a 23-43 regular season record and a 2-1 record in the postseason.
The Jaguars finished 2020 in last place in the AFC South with a 1-15 record, the worst single-season record in franchise history. As a result, general manager Dave Caldwell was fired over a month before Marrone, leading to the Jaguars bringing a clean sweep to their football operations in 2021.
“Well, I think all of that. If you look at some of the successful head coaches in the NFL, four years ago you probably had not heard of them. So I think there’s a lot of talent out there, and frankly we want to look at all of that. So, I mean, if there are assistants, proven head coaches, all of that, we’ll be looking at," Khan said on January 4.
"And on the rumor of Urban Meyer, obviously, I’ve known Urban over the years through Big Ten and what have you. But we have not spoken to anyone about this job or even, obviously, interviewed him. I mean, this is something—just made the decision this morning. So, you know there is—and I’ll leave it at that.”
The Jaguars reportedly interviewed five coaches since firing Marrone: Meyer, San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh, Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy, and Atlanta Falcons interim head coach Raheem Morris.
It appears the Jaguars have finally landed Meyer, however, and all we are now waiting on is an official announcement from the team.
