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    N.F.L. Rookie Quarterbacks Have Been Bad. Can That Change?

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    The Patriots’ Mac Jones, the Jaguars’ Trevor Lawrence and the Jets’ Zach Wilson have so far combined to go 1-8 this season.Good rookie quarterbacks are all alike. Terrible rookie quarterbacks are all terrible in their own way. And this year’s rookie quarterbacks? They look far more terrible than usual.Three N.F.L. rookies have started all three of their teams’ games at quarterback so far this season: Mac Jones of the New England Patriots, Trevor Lawrence of the Jacksonville Jaguars and Zach Wilson of the Jets. They have combined to throw 17 interceptions and just nine touchdowns while leading their teams to a collective 1-8 record. The only victory was when Jones’s Patriots defeated Wilson’s Jets.Justin Fields made his much-anticipated first start for the Chicago Bears on Sunday in Week 3, after Andy Dalton started the first two games. Fields completed 6 of 20 passes for 68 yards while enduring nine sacks for 67 lost yards, meaning the Bears netted precisely 1 yard of passing offense in a 26-6 loss to the Cleveland Browns.Add emergency appearances by the middle-round draft picks Davis Mills of the Houston Texans and Jacob Eason of the Indianapolis Colts, plus gadget-specialist cameos by Trey Lance of the San Francisco 49ers, and rookie quarterbacks so far this season have combined to throw 20 interceptions, absorb 42 sacks and complete just 57.7 percent of their passes.Rookie quarterbacks are typically mediocre to dreadful. Fans tend to remember exceptional cases, like Justin Herbert’s offensive-rookie-of-the-year-winning performance in 2020, while the struggles of top prospects like Dwayne Haskins, Josh Rosen, Josh Allen, Jared Goff and many others are either forgotten or politely retconned when they later achieve success.It is rare, however, for so many rookies to be so punishingly awful in so many early appearances. Sam Darnold had a tragicomic rookie season for the 2018 Jets (a bout of mononucleosis, “seeing ghosts” against the Patriots’ defense), but he threw two touchdowns and led the Jets to victory in his very first start. Joe Burrow, Carson Wentz, Jameis Winston, Marcus Mariota and many others also enjoyed early success before tailing off or getting injured, or both. A rookie season is usually a roller-coaster ride. So far in 2021, they have all been haunted houses.Reasons for the miserable starts vary from team to team. Wilson’s Jets are embarking on their second foundation-to-rafters rebuilding project of the last three years. Their roster looks like it was assembled using a newsstand draft guide with the first 50 pages torn out. Injuries have sidelined a handful of the team’s remaining recognizable veterans, including left tackle Mekhi Becton, who was Wilson’s top pass protector, and wide receiver Jamison Crowder, who was Wilson’s short-pass safety valve. Nearly every Jets rookie quarterback of the past half-century has been in for an ordeal, but Wilson faces an especially dire situation.Lawrence is coached by Urban Meyer, the latest in a long line of collegiate potentates (Steve Spurrier, Nick Saban, Bobby Petrino and Chip Kelly among them) who learned the hard way that they could not operate as deities in the N.F.L. Meyer’s tenure thus far has been marred by fines from the N.F.L. Players Association for violating practice protocols, a vainglorious comeback attempt by Tim Tebow and a public denial that he is interested in the University of Southern California coaching vacancy. (Like Julius Caesar, Meyer is obligated to reject the crown three times before seizing it.) The Jaguars perform each Sunday as if they are the third or fourth thing on their coach’s mind.Meyer also forced Lawrence to split first-string practice reps with a lame-duck incumbent, Gardner Minshew, for much of training camp, before Minshew was traded to the Eagles, perhaps still believing that he could redshirt his prized freshmen. Lawrence’s relative lack of practice time with the starters may be contributing to his woes.Jones was relegated to mostly second-string reps until Cam Newton missed a portion of training camp after a breach of Covid-19 protocols. Patriots Coach Bill Belichick unexpectedly released the creaky, eccentric and probably unvaccinated Newton in late August, allowing the team to focus its attention on a Hitchcockian attempt to transform Jones into Tom Brady. (Wear these rings for us, Mac. Now eat this avocado ice cream.) Playing behind a sturdy offensive line, supported by an outstanding defense and getting the Pygmalion treatment from Belichick, Jones has been the best of the rookie bunch so far.Fields, by contrast, looked utterly unprepared for his first start. Bears Coach Matt Nagy insisted Dalton was the team’s unchallenged starter from the moment the 11-year veteran arrived in March, denying Fields any chance to compete for the role in the preseason. Whether Fields is now unready because of a lack of starter’s reps or he didn’t earn starter’s reps because he wasn’t ready for them is the sort of chicken or egg question N.F.L. franchises typically answer by firing the coach.There’s a cottage industry of Dalton-like “mentors” who roam the league, serving as combination stunt doubles and therapy pets for coaches panic-stricken by the thought of starting a rookie. It is debatable whether these caretakers help rookies or hinder them: Whatever Fields learned from watching Dalton sure looked like the wrong lessons on Sunday. Jimmy Garoppolo is holding off Lance in San Francisco by executing the screen passes and misdirection plays coaches typically use to hide the deficiencies of their rookies. Still, one look at Fields, Jones, Lawrence or Wilson is all the justification the 49ers need for sticking with Garoppolo for now.There’s no reason to worry about the futures of these rookie quarterbacks just yet. Peyton Manning threw 11 interceptions in his first four N.F.L. starts. Troy Aikman led the Dallas Cowboys to an 0-11 record in his first season. John Elway was benched multiple times as a rookie. A lack of early success might actually help the 2021 rookies in the long run by tempering expectations and dimming the national spotlight.Fans need to be patient. So do coaches, especially the ones accustomed to working with Hall of Famers or trouncing Bowling Green State this time of year. At least some of this year’s rookies will come around soon enough, though Jets and Jaguars fans can assure you that there are no guarantees. More

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      Which A.F.C. Teams Could Challenge Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs?

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      The Kansas City Chiefs fortified their offensive line in pursuit of another championship, but the Bills, Browns and a bevy of first-year starters should shake up the order.With back-to-back trips to the Super Bowl, it’s fair to say that the conference once ruled by Tom Brady and Peyton Manning now belongs to Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs.But last season’s churn lifted new contenders and stoked new rivalries that could define the next decade for the A.F.C. The Buffalo Bills reached the conference championship and the Cleveland Browns won a playoff game, both for the first time since 1994, and the two franchises are looking to build on that success. Meanwhile, the Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans will try to settle their disdain for each other without drawing newly emphasized taunting penalties this season.Though the Texans’ fate is wrapped up in Deshaun Watson’s future, rookie quarterbacks will have their say elsewhere as the Jaguars’ Trevor Lawrence, Jets’ Zach Wilson and Patriots’ Mac Jones make their debuts. Here’s a look at where the A.F.C. stands as the 2021 season kicks off.A.F.C. EastBuffalo Bills (13-3)Key additions: QB Mitchell Trubisky, WR Emmanuel Sanders, RB Matt BreidaKey departures: WR John Brown, CB Josh NormanThe Bills came within one game of returning to the Super Bowl last season, so their priority was to lock in their best talent, starting with quarterback Josh Allen, who signed a six-year contract extension during training camp. To round out what were the N.F.L.’s second-best offense and a middling defense in 2020, the team also re-signed linebacker Matt Milano, guard Jon Feliciano and offensive tackle Daryl Williams, and picked up the fifth-year option on linebacker Tremaine Edmunds, and restocked the offensive and defensive lines early in the draft.Miami Dolphins (10-6)Key additions: WR Will Fuller V, QB Jacoby Brissett, CB Justin Coleman, RB Malcolm BrownKey departures: LB Kyle Van Noy, QB Ryan FitzpatrickThe Dolphins were one of the most improved teams in the N.F.L. in 2020, bouncing back from a five-win 2019 season to narrowly miss a playoff berth. To get over the postseason hump, the team gave quarterback Tua Tagovailoa another deep threat in Fuller, to go with DeVante Parker and Jaylen Waddle, whom the Dolphins drafted sixth overall. Tagovailoa went 6-3 in nine starts, with 11 touchdowns last season, so there’s reason to expect improvement, but if he falters, Brissett’s one-year deal gives the Dolphins a veteran to step in to lead an offense that ranked 22nd in the league last year.New England Patriots (7-9)Key additions: QB Mac Jones, TE Jonnu Smith, TE Hunter Henry, WR Nelson AgholorKey departures: QB Cam Newton, RB Sony Michel, S Patrick Chung, OG Joe ThuneyBill Belichick doesn’t like losing and after experiencing his first losing season since 2000, the year he took over in New England, the Patriots’ coach had a very busy off-season. Quarterback Cam Newton clearly was not the long-term solution to the hole left by Tom Brady, but the rookie Jones will face an expedited development after Newton’s sudden release at the end of training camp.Jones benefits from Belichick’s free agent spending in the off-season, when the coach used the league’s second-most cap space to lure in elite tight ends Smith and Henry, who figure to factor heavily in the offense. Defensive back Jalen Mills and linebacker Matthew Judon, who spent five seasons with the Baltimore Ravens, round out the summer haul that should alert Buffalo and Miami that Belichick wants his division back.New York Jets (2-14)The Jets took quarterback Zach Wilson from B.Y.U. with the second overall pick in this year’s draft.Matt Ludtke/Associated PressKey additions: QB Zach Wilson, WR Corey Davis, DT Sheldon Rankins, DE Carl LawsonKey departures: LB Jordan Jenkins, LB Tarell Basham, WR Breshad PerrimanAfter a disastrous 2020 season, the Jets and their new head coach, Robert Saleh, need more than just one off-season to fill all the holes in their roster. They began the restock in April’s draft by selecting Wilson, who takes over what was the league’s worst offense, and targeting the secondary by taking five defensive backs, led by Jamien Sherwood of Auburn.Davis and Keelan Cole Sr. should provide receiver depth alongside Jamison Crowder, and running back Tevin Coleman, who arrives in free agency after playing in only eight games for the 49ers last season due to a knee injury, should give Wilson a release valve if he’s healthy.—Ken BelsonA.F.C. NorthBaltimore Ravens (11-5)Key additions: WR Sammy Watkins, LT Alejandro VillanuevaKey departures: RB Mark Ingram II, LB Matthew Judon, DE Yannick NgakoueBy their standards, the Ravens had a down year in 2020 despite finishing 11-5 in one of the league’s most competitive divisions. Opponents found ways to slow the team’s running game and quarterback Lamar Jackson, whose season ended with a concussion sustained during the divisional round loss to the Buffalo Bills.Jackson enters his fourth season no doubt motivated to show why he deserves a big long-term contract extension and Watkins’ deep threat potential should help him make his case. He will also need to adjust to the absence of J.K. Dobbins, the lead running back who suffered a season-ending knee injury during a preseason game, though the Ravens have a capable backup in Gus Edwards.Team executives aiming for a deeper postseason run focused as usual on defense, re-signing linebackers Chris Board, Tyus Bowser and L.J. Fort, to go with a talented backfield that includes Marcus Peters and Marlon Humphrey.Cornerback Marcus Peters and the Ravens celebrated a fourth-quarter interception in the A.F.C. wild card win over the Titans in January.Wesley Hitt/Getty ImagesCincinnati Bengals (4-11-1)Key additions: WR Ja’Marr Chase, RT Riley Reiff, CB Eli Apple, CB Ricardo AllenKey departures: WR A.J. Green, RB Giovani BernardQuarterback Joe Burrow, the first overall draft pick in 2020, saw his disappointing rookie season end in Week 11 when he tore ligaments in his left knee on a brutal hit. Burrow is expected to be back for the season opener against Minnesota, behind an improved offensive line coached by Frank Pollack, who returns to Cincinnati after two seasons with the Jets.Though the team passed over Penei Sewell to reunite Burrow with Chase, who should again give his quarterback a reliable deep threat, it added Reiff to the line on a one-year deal and drafted Jackson Carman, who protected Trevor Lawrence at Clemson, in the second round. Those additions likely won’t be enough to stop the Browns, Ravens and Steelers from continuing to dominate the division, but they’ll suffice if they keep Burrow off the operating table.Cleveland Browns (11-5)Key additions: DE Jadeveon Clowney, CB Greg Newsome, S John Johnson, LB Anthony WalkerKey departures: DT Sheldon RichardsonAfter ending the N.F.L.’s longest playoff drought with a wild card win over the vaunted Steelers, the Browns aren’t settling for a victory lap in the 2021 season. General Manger Andrew Berry continued revamping the roster this off-season, with a square aim on a defense that allowed too many clock-sucking drives in 2020.Berry brought in the top available defensive free agent in April, signing Clowney to a one-year deal to complement Myles Garrett in the pass rush, and added Johnson, perhaps the best available secondary player in free agency. Baker Mayfield, who cut down his turnovers in 2020, should benefit from having a healthy Odell Beckham Jr. to target.Pittsburgh Steelers (12-4)Key additions: RB Najee Harris, DB Miles Killebrew, OT Joe HaegKey departures: RB James Conner, C Maurkice Pouncey, LB Bud Dupree, T Alejandro VillanuevaThe Ben Roethlisberger era, now in its 18th season, persists. How it will end is the question. Big Ben, 39, seemed to toss off any questions about his rebuilt throwing arm by beginning last season on an 11-0 run. But Pittsburgh couldn’t complete a rally in the wild card round to beat the Browns and the season was dashed well shy of expectations.The Steelers re-signed one of Roethlisberger’s favorite receivers, JuJu Smith-Schuster, and drafted in the first round running back Najee Harris, who broke Derrick Henry’s rushing touchdowns record at Alabama. But the Steelers lost two of their best offensive linemen and with Cleveland on the rise and Baltimore looking for a longer playoff run, the Steelers will have a hard time winning the A.F.C. North again.—Ken BelsonA.F.C. SouthHouston Texans (4-12)Key arrivals: QB Tyrod Taylor, RB Rex Burkhead, OT Marcus Cannon, OL Justin BrittKey departures: WR Will Fuller V, C Nick Martin, DE J.J. WattThe 22 pending lawsuits against Deshaun Watson accusing him of sexual misconduct, which he has denied, loom over a franchise that chooses to pretend it’s not at all weird for him to take fourth-team reps at quarterback or serve as scout-team safety — or be with the team at all. Then again, not much makes sense about the Texans, whose front-office dysfunction and salary-cap mismanagement alienated their best players and precipitated a roster, reconstituted with free agents on short-term deals and coached by a first-timer in David Culley, that may luck its way into a victory or two. Or maybe not.Indianapolis Colts (11-5)Key arrivals: QB Carson Wentz, OT Eric Fisher, DT Antwaun Woods, DE Kwity PayeKey departures: QB Philip Rivers, QB Jacoby Brissett, OT Anthony Castonzo, DE Denico Autry, LB Justin Houston, S Malik HookerNot many teams are constructed and coached as well as the Colts, who went about solving the quarterback quandary prompted by Philip Rivers’s retirement … by acquiring one of the worst in the N.F.L by many statistical measures, advanced or traditional. Carson Wentz has been reunited with Coach Frank Reich and Press Taylor, former mentors in Philadelphia, but is recovering from foot surgery that imperils his availability for Week 1. If Wentz can’t revive his career, a team brimming with talent — guard Quenton Nelson, defensive tackle DeForest Buckner and linebacker Darius Leonard all rank among the best in the league at their positions — can expect to struggle, especially with a brutal early schedule.Jacksonville Jaguars (1-15)Key arrivals: QB Trevor Lawrence, RB Carlos Hyde, DT Malcom Brown, CB Shaquill GriffinKey departures: WR Keelan ColeIn a college hotbed, owner Shahid Khan has entrusted a successful college coach, Urban Meyer, and the best college quarterback prospect in a decade to resuscitate one of the N.F.L.’s woebegone franchises. The Jaguars will be relevant. Whether they’ll be anything more than competitive depends on the progress of, duh, Lawrence, and their brigade of recent high draft picks, defensive end K’Lavon Chaisson, cornerback C.J. Henderson and receiver Laviska Shenault. Alas, the Jaguars couldn’t schedule Florida A&M or Kent State to ease Meyer’s transition; they’ll have to settle for playing the Texans twice.Tennessee Titans (11-5)Key arrivals: WR Julio Jones, DE Denico Autry, LB Bud Dupree, CB Caleb FarleyKey departures: WR Corey Davis, TE Jonnu Smith, LB Jadeveon Clowney, CB Malcolm ButlerThe Titans were perhaps the most unbalanced team in the N.F.L. last season — elite offense, woeful defense — and hey, guess what? They very well might be again. Their off-season makeover yielded an inexperienced secondary and a thin group of pass-rushers headlined by Dupree, who is coming off knee surgery.It also netted Jones, who if he stays healthy adds another mismatch in the passing game to complement A.J. Brown. As assembled, the Titans are good enough to win this middling division again, but their chances would improve if they narrowed that gap between offense and defense even a bit.—Ben ShpigelA.F.C. WestDenver Broncos (5-11)Key Additions: QB Teddy Bridgewater, CB Patrick Surtain II (1st round) CB Ronald Darby, CB Kyle FullerKey Departures: RB Phillip Lindsay, CB A.J. Bouye, TE Nick Vannett, RT Ja’Wuan JamesThe Broncos spent much of training camp evaluating a quarterback battle between a journeyman and a young, inconsistent passer.Teddy Bridgewater, discarded by the Carolina Panthers in a trade, wrenched the starting job away from Drew Lock, who led the league in interceptions thrown in 2020. Bridgewater’s risk-averse play should be a boon to receivers Jerry Jeudy and Courtland Sutton. Star linebacker Von Miller returns from an ankle injury that kept him out last season, holding down a strong defense that got better for drafting cornerback Patrick Surtain II and adding the veteran Fuller in free agency.Kansas City Chiefs (14-2)Key Additions: OT Orlando Brown, OG Joe Thuney, DT Jarran Reed, OL Austin BlytheKey Departures: OT Eric Fisher, WR Sammy Watkins, OT Mitchell SchwartzThe Chiefs’ depleted offensive line was exposed in last year’s playoffs, first when Mahomes took on a hit by the Browns in the divisional round, and definitively in the Super Bowl, when the Buccaneers sacked Mahomes twice and hit him nine times. General manager Brett Veach addressed the deficiency in the off-season by trading for Brown and drafting 6-foot-5 center Creed Humphrey in the second round. The new-look offensive line should give Mahomes the time in the pocket to find his speedy playmakers instead of relying on him to be one.Las Vegas Raiders (8-8)Key Additions: DL Yannick Ngakoue, RB Kenyan Drake, WR John Brown, OL Alex LeatherwoodKey Departures: WR Nelson Agholor, DE Takkarist McKinley, RB Devontae BookerTight end Darren Waller became the Raiders’ best offensive weapon last season, catching 107 passes and posting over 1,000 receiving yards. Opponents noticed. This season, defenses focused on stopping Waller should be kept honest by running back Josh Jacobs, who earned his first Pro Bowl selection in 2020, and deep threat receiver Henry Ruggs III.The Raiders’ top-10 offense was weighed down by a defense that ranked 30th in the N.F.L. and gave up 389 yards per game. New defensive coordinator Gus Bradley was brought in along with Ngakoue, who should compliment Maxx Crosby on the defensive line. That unit could hold control over how hot Coach Jon Gruden’s seat gets.Los Angeles Chargers (7-9)After missing all of the 2020 season and 11 games in 2019, Chargers safety Derwin James, right, is back to his pass-stealing ways in Los Angeles.Alex Gallardo/Associated PressKey Additions: C Corey Linsley, OT Matt Feiler, TE Jared Cook, OT Rashawn SlaterKey Departures: TE Hunter Henry, CB Casey Hayward, DE Melvin IngramHad a team physician not accidentally punctured Tyrod Taylor’s lung, Justin Herbert may never have played last season. But he did, and his stellar performance — throwing for over 4,000 yards, 31 touchdowns and just 10 interceptions, earned him the Offensive Rookie of the Year Award. Herbert’s rise was the bright spot in a season in which the Chargers clumsily lost seven games by one score and fired Coach Anthony Lynn.His replacement, Brandon Staley, takes over a revamped offensive line and gets back safety Derwin James, an All-Pro in 2018, who missed 11 games after fracturing his right foot in 2019 and sat out the 2020 season with a torn meniscus. With James healthy, a wild-card berth isn’t out of the question.—Emmanuel Morgan More

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      Urban Meyer’s Renewal in Jacksonville

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      They filed into the first few rows of TIAA Bank Field, 120 staffers from the Jacksonville Jaguars’ business side, sitting there like so many college boosters and alumni Urban Meyer had addressed over the years. He gathered them there on a sunny afternoon in early March, nearly two months after being hired to revive one of the N.F.L.’s more forlorn franchises, to deliver a speech similar in spirit and substance to ones he’d given as the coach at college behemoths like Ohio State and Florida.After retiring from coaching in 2018, Meyer, 56, had a cushy television gig and a secure legacy as one of the best, and most polarizing, coaches in recent college football history. But he was still unfulfilled. He wanted to coach again, and despite the N.F.L.’s history of conquering celebrated college coaches trying to recreate their glory in the pros, Meyer determined his best fit was with the worst team of the last decade.Tabbed to try to reorient this wayward organization, Meyer conjured his past as an ace recruiter. Wearing white shorts and a gray Jaguars pullover, he urged the assembled employees to “own it,” a call to action he also used at the Jan. 15 news conference introducing him as Jacksonville’s new coach. He implored them to take pride in every facet of the organization, right down to the team logo.“This, right now, is not the most respected logo in the N.F.L. — it’s not,” Meyer said that day. “If in three years it still doesn’t mean much, then you’re probably looking for a new coach and we’ve not been very successful. That’s how personally I’m taking it.”Meyer’s rah-rah message underscored that his competitive drive to own anything and everything about a program, a compulsion that produced three national titles — two at Florida and one at Ohio State — remained fierce, even after a two-year layoff.That self-imposed time away from coaching came after a string of scandals and stress- and health-related issues helped cause him to resign or retire three times in his career. Meyer’s college teams were 187-32 (.854) while, at Florida, there were 31 arrests of players during his tenure, and, at Ohio State, he protected a longtime assistant with a history of domestic abuse.As he weighed whether to re-enter a culture that glorifies workaholics, Meyer did not choose any of the more visible (and venerable) franchises that also wanted him. Instead he pursued the top job in one of the N.F.L.’s smallest markets with a team that perennially has to quell speculation that it will move to London.Jacksonville is poised on Thursday to select Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence, one of the best quarterback prospects in decades, with the first overall pick in the N.F.L. draft. After years of disarray, the Jaguars, as desperate for an identity as they are for victories, have arrived at the most critical juncture since their inception in 1995, an inflection point that the team owner Shahid Khan called “a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity in football.” The union between Meyer and Khan is meant to make good on it.“Now, we get a fresh start,” Khan said in an interview in mid-April. “Everybody gets that this isn’t rebuilding. I mean, we need to win now.”Jaguars fans at a Bold City Brigade tailgate during the 2019 season. The 2020 season, the worst in franchise history, yielded its most promising moment: the right to draft Trevor Lawrence. Dustin HegedusSince Khan’s first season as owner in 2012, no team has a worse record than the Jaguars (39-105), who until last year’s 1-15 debacle somehow never managed to be quite putrid enough to earn the No. 1 draft pick. They have outspent every other team in free agency over that period, but recorded only one winning season, in 2017, during which they lost the A.F.C. title game at New England. Since that apex, Jacksonville is 12-36.John Caputo, the president of Bold City Brigade, a Jaguars supporters club with chapters around the country and overseas, likes to say that fair-weather Jacksonville fans cannot exist. For years, they have endured taunts about their team, their city, their own perceived apathy, and still they fork over discretionary income to watch bad football in person.The darkness lifted in December when the worst season in franchise history yielded its most promising moment: The winless Jets beat the Los Angeles Rams in Week 15, vaulting one-win Jacksonville ahead on tiebreakers for the right to draft Lawrence. “The last month of the season was the most fun we’ve had since 2017 even though we were setting a franchise record for being terrible,” Caputo said. “Because of the Trevor watch.”As the Jets edged Los Angeles, Caputo sat, riveted, at a bar near his home in Jacksonville Beach. Patrons chanted, “J-E-T-S, Jets, Jets, Jets!” Afraid the Jets would lose if he left, Caputo stayed until the end.“For the last 10 years all we want is for the Jaguars to win, but they lose,” Caputo said in a video call. “And so now we’re actually cheering for them to lose, which was kind of liberating.”His friend Pat Donnell, the Brigade’s vice president, chimed in: “And they didn’t let us down.”In light of the team’s rebuilding fortune, fans are rallying to newfound ambitions. Since Meyer arrived, deposits for season tickets have poured in so fast — and from so many new customers — that the Jaguars hired 20 new sales representatives. Traffic on the team’s website and social media accounts has soared, with much of it coming from locations outside Florida, including the Midwest, where Meyer last coached.Coach Urban Meyer, far right, watched Trevor Lawrence, foreground, work out at Clemson’s pro day in February.David Platt/Clemson Athletics, via USA Today Sports, via ReutersA bonanza of fan-designed apparel has cropped up. “Urban Renewal” merchandise is for sale along with T-shirts blaring “Hope,” beneath Lawrence’s photo, a nod to the popular Shepard Fairey-designed poster for Barack Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign.Scores of Jaguars fans contributed $9.04, a homage to Jacksonville’s area code, and bought Lawrence and his new wife, Marissa, a $299.95 toaster from their wedding registry. The fans’ gifts, combined with $20,000 Lawrence said he’d chip in and other donations, added up to more than $54,000 that will be given to charities. “Thanks again, we hope to be a part of your community soon,” Lawrence responded on Twitter.Lawrence’s pending arrival has reinvigorated a franchise that has tried and failed to find a quarterback to outshine Mark Brunell, who started eight playoff games for Jacksonville in the late 1990s. But Meyer’s hiring has given the Jaguars immediate credibility as a team that might also responsibly manage a talented star’s rise.Khan and Meyer had chatted at a few functions over the years, but it wasn’t until Khan bumped into Meyer at an invitation-only N.F.L. party before the Super Bowl in February 2020 in Miami Gardens, Fla., that they shared an extended conversation. As they discussed each other’s backgrounds, Khan found that Meyer’s leadership traits were similar to those he’d acquired immigrating to the United States from Pakistan at age 16 and becoming a global auto parts magnate: relentless ambition, a hands-on temperament, trust in his staff.Though Meyer fielded interest from other teams, he was drawn in by Khan’s offer to remake the franchise in his image. If he succeeds, Meyer can become only the fourth coach to win both a national college championship and a Super Bowl, after Jimmy Johnson, Barry Switzer and Pete Carroll.“If you know Urban, I mean, he doesn’t do much on quick decisions or on a whim,” said Florida Coach Dan Mullen, a close friend and former assistant of Meyer’s. “Everything he does is extremely well thought out with a very detailed plan of why he would do it.”Prepping for coaching interviews, Meyer had canvassed his former players in the N.F.L. and contacted, among others, Johnson to learn how he rebuilt the Dallas Cowboys three decades ago after leaving the University of Miami.The conversations with Khan moved swiftly, and Meyer called his decision to accept the job — and the bounty of benefits that accompanied it, from the weather to the lack of state income tax to Jacksonville’s swell of Florida Gators fans — an easy one.“They got the first pick, a chance to start fresh, start with some salary-cap advantages,” Meyer said in an interview. “Really, if you look at the team, there’s some very good core players here.”Khan, after having experimented (and failed) with various front office power-sharing models, reworked the organizational hierarchy to give Meyer maximum leeway and a big role in the general manager search.“This, right now, is not the most respected logo in the N.F.L. — it’s not,” Meyer said in an address to team personnel, vowing to change that.Jacksonville JaguarsN.F.L. owners have long been fascinated with innovative or triumphant college coaches, and although some flourished at the pro level, many, including Nick Saban and Steve Spurrier, struggled to adapt. In the N.F.L., recruiting prowess is neutralized. Motivational tactics that might work with 19- and 20-year-olds might not work on grown men. Roster limitations and the salary cap, intended to foster parity, wrest control from control freaks. So can injuries and meddlesome owners.Spurrier was 56, same as Meyer now, when he — regrettably, he says — rushed into accepting a head coaching job in Washington, where he came to learn that the owner, Daniel Snyder, would be rather involved in personnel matters. In their first year together, in 2002, Snyder pushed Spurrier against his objections to play the rookie quarterback Patrick Ramsey, and the next year released the second-stringer Danny Wuerffel, who played for Spurrier at Florida. Unable to pick even his backup, Spurrier later told his wife, Jerri, that he’d be done after that season.“I was offered a bunch of money, and I did not use an agent, and I wasn’t probably as careful as getting things in writing as I should have,” Spurrier said. “I did a poor job also, and I’ll admit to that. But the situation ran me out.”Neither Spurrier nor Saban — nor any of their college brethren, really — inherited a situation quite as favorable as Meyer’s in Jacksonville, where he can develop a franchise quarterback while continuing to stockpile talent with four other 2021 draft selections in the top 65.Khan’s words might teem with optimism, but the Jaguars are still going to lose — more often, perhaps, than Meyer, whose worst season as a college head coach was 8-5, ever has. Meyer’s ability to cope with defeat may determine his longevity in the N.F.L.“That’s the first thing I talked to him about when he took the job,” Mullen said. “I mean, ‘How are you going to handle that?’ Ten-and-six is a great year, and I don’t know if he would ever view 10-6 as a great year.”Meyer had far more success than the last two N.F.L. hires plucked from the college ranks, Matt Rhule (hired by the Panthers) and Kliff Kingsbury (Cardinals), but he recognizes that he must adapt on a number of fronts.Already he seemed to misjudge the extent of the backlash generated by the hiring of a strength coach, Chris Doyle, who left Iowa’s staff after several current and former players said he had promoted a culture of bullying and racism. Within hours of the Fritz Pollard Alliance’s condemning the decision, calling it “simply unacceptable,” Doyle resigned.Recruiting players is one of Meyer’s strengths, but unlike in college, where he often had several face-to-face conversations with potential players, he didn’t speak with any prospective free agents until after they signed. The Jaguars signed more than a dozen free agents, including several veterans who played for Meyer and his coaches, like running back Carlos Hyde, who said it was a “no-brainer” to rejoin him.“We’ve been lucky,” Meyer said. “A lot of guys are here training. But we haven’t had a team meeting yet. In college, you probably would have had 50 by now.”But as he is fast learning, Meyer is not in college anymore. More

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      Patriots, 49ers Among N.F.L. Free Agency’s Biggest Spenders

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      The 2021 N.F.L. salary cap has crunched some teams looking to shore up their rosters. Others have opened up their wallets.In an off-season characterized by a $182.5 million salary cap, down 8 percent from 2020, N.F.L. general managers are maneuvering the landscape carefully. With the official start of free agency underway, executives are looking at players to add — or keep — on their rosters, but only at the right price.Of course, some teams are already spending more aggressively than others, mostly on big contracts for proven defensive talent and one-year deals for a handful of high-profile names. In the coming days, teams with leftover cap room are expected to fill in the gaps with a loaded pool of free agent receivers who have taken a back seat with the crunched cap limit.So far, these are the teams that have set the market in free agency, investing millions of dollars in free agency for a better chance of hoisting the Lombardi Trophy next February (or throwing it to a teammate on another boat during the celebratory parade).New England PatriotsAfter missing the playoffs and finishing 7-9 in 2020, general manager/coach Bill Belichick strengthened his team by spending more than $268 million in contracts, the biggest free agent spree in the league so far, according to Spotrac. New England doled a sizable portion of that sum to the offense, which struggled in its first season without quarterback Tom Brady, who won his seventh Super Bowl after leaving for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers a year ago in free agency.Belichick went all in on tight ends, signing Jonnu Smith to a four-year, $50 million contract and Hunter Henry to a three-year, $37.5 million deal. By prying Smith away from the Tennessee Titans and Henry away from the Los Angeles Chargers, the Patriots are poised to use two-tight end formations, as they did from 2010-12 with Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez. The offense ranked in the top three in scoring each of those seasons. Smith caught 41 passes for 448 yard and eight touchdowns last season and Henry was the Chargers’ second-leading receiver with 60 catches for 613 yards and four touchdowns.While the Patriots re-signed quarterback Cam Newton to another one-year deal, it is still possible that New England adds another quarterback this off-season. Whoever’s under center should have at least two dependable targets.San Francisco 49ersOffensive tackle Trent Williams was selected to the Pro Bowl after the 2020 season, his first with the San Francisco 49ers.Rick Scuteri/Associated PressDecimated by injuries last season, the 49ers inked two major additions to its offensive front in an effort to quickly rebound as an N.F.C. contender.The team locked in eight-time Pro Bowl selection Trent Williams to a six-year, $138 million contract, making him the highest-paid offensive lineman in N.F.L. history. Williams had been traded to San Francisco last year after he held out the 2019 season over a claim that Washington Football Team doctors mishandled treating a cancerous tumor on his head. He joins center Alex Mack, a six-time Pro Bowler who the 49ers signed to a three-year, $14.85 million deal.A good chunk of the $164.9 million the 49ers spent in free agency went to adding two of the best blockers in football to protect quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo against the N.F.C. West’s aggressive pass rushers, Rams Aaron Donald and Arizona Cardinals’ J.J. Watt. An upright quarterback tends to have a positive effect on a team’s offense.Jacksonville JaguarsBy trading expensive players such as Jalen Ramey and Yannick Ngakoue in recent seasons, the Jacksonville Jaguars entered free agency with a bevy of available cap space. They have offered $144 million in total value for contracts. They focused primarily on defense, after finishing 1-15 with the league’s second-worst defense, signing cornerback Shaquill Griffin to a three-year, $40-millon contract, safety Rayshawn Jenkins to a four-year, $35-million deal and defensive end Roy Robertson-Harris to three years and $23.4 million.Offensively, the Jaguars’ rebuild starts with the draft, where the team will mostly likely use the No. 1 overall pick to select Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence. First-time N.F.L. head coach Urban Meyer, who team owner Shahid Khan said will have roster control, is using free agency to plug holes before the new face of the franchise arrives. But Meyer has already voiced his displeasure with some aspects of running an N.F.L. team, calling the league’s legal tampering period “awful.”Cincinnati BengalsA strong free agency market for defensive talent led the woeful Bengals (4-11 in the 2020 season) to prioritize that side of the ball with $122.75 million in free agent contracts. The team also signed Vikings tackle Riley Reiff to a one year, $7.5-million deal, the first step in fixing a weak offensive line charged with protecting Joe Burrow, who tied for ninth-most sacked quarterback in the league last season.Tennessee TitansDerrick Henry’s legs can only carry the Titans so far. Despite a season where the running back again led the league in rushing yards, Tennessee was bounced from the playoffs in the wild-card round. This off-season, general manager Jon Robinson bolstered the pass rush by adding former Steelers outside linebacker Bud Dupree on a five-year, $82.5-million contract. Dupree had eight sacks for the Steelers in the 2020 season. The Titans are paying him to help contain opposing quarterbacks with the potential to burn them on the ground as the Ravens’ Lamar Jackson did in key moments of that playoff loss to Baltimore.JetsFirst-year head coach Robert Saleh’s defensive background showed in free agency when the Jets signed defensive end Carl Lawson to a three-year, $45-million deal. It’s the largest the Jets finalized in free agency thus far, contributing to the $110.25 million in total contracts.Pairing Lawson, whose speed helped him to 5.5 sacks last season with the Bengals, on the edge should complement the power of third-year defensive lineman Quinnen Williams. The Jets hold the No. 2 overall pick in the draft, and are a rumored landing spot for Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson. Their roster could still see major additions.Tampa Bay BuccaneersShaquil Barrett, right, is a critical part of the Buccaneers’ pass rush and was a key contributor to Tampa Bay’s Super Bowl run. Ashley Landis/Associated PressThe 2020 Super Bowl champions faced serious questions on if they could keep the core group of key contributors — linebacker Shaquil Barrett, receiver Chris Godwin, and tight end Rob Gronkowski and others needed new contracts — with little available cap space entering free agency.With some slick accounting, Tampa Bay looks like it will keep most of the band together.General manager Jason Licht cleared cap space by placing the franchise tag on Godwin and Tom Brady contributed too, by reworking his contract and signing a four-year extension to lessen the team’s cap hit.The Buccaneers have spent $93 million so far in free agency, highlighted by a four-year, $68-million contact for Barrett, who shined at the end of the playoffs as part of the team’s phenomenal pass rush. Barrett sacked Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers three times in the N.F.C. championship game and hounded Patrick Mahomes in the Super Bowl.Still finessing the available cap space, the Buccaneers also retained tight end Rob Gronkowski on a one-year deal reportedly worth up to $10 million and can now turn their attention to receiver Antonio Brown, running back Leonard Fournette and defensive lineman Ndamukong Suh in the hope of making another championship run.Los Angeles ChargersRookie quarterback Justin Herbert came into the league without a traditional training camp, was thrust into the starting spot after a freak injury to the starter, and still completed a record-breaking rookie year.He did all that with a rotating cast of offensive lineman, who the Chargers have looked to upgrade in free agency by signing former Packers All-Pro center Corey Linsley to a five-year, $62.5-million deal and adding Pittsburgh Steelers tackle Matt Feiler on a three-year, $21-million deal.Under new head coach Brandon Staley, the Chargers have spent $89.5 million so far in free agency to make Herbert’s second N.F.L. season a bit more stable.Washington Football TeamThe most impactful of Washington’s signings was inking journeyman quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick to a one-year, $10-million contract to challenge Taylor Heinicke (who got a two-year, $4.75-million deal) at the position. It will be Fitzpatrick’s ninth team in his 17-year career.Fitzpatrick, who initially started last season for the Miami Dolphins last season before coach Brian Flores inserted rookie Tua Tagovailoa, should allow Washington to compete for a playoff berth in the wide-open N.F.C. East. He also buys the team time to find a long-term quarterback solution if Heinicke isn’t it.Kansas City ChiefsMahomes absorbed three sacks and nine hits in the Super Bowl, largely because starting tackles Eric Fisher and Mitchell Schwartz were out with injuries.The team released both long-tenured tackles and added Patriots lineman Joe Thuney on a five-year, $80-million contract. Kansas City re-signed tackle Mike Remmers to a one-year deal reportedly worth up to $7 million. More

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      Jaguars' Hiring of Chris Doyle Called 'Unacceptable' by Fritz Pollard Alliance

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      AdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storyDiversity Group Calls Jaguars’ Hiring of Assistant Coach ‘Simply Unacceptable’The Fritz Pollard Alliance criticized the addition of Chris Doyle, who was accused of mistreatment of Black players at the University of Iowa, to Urban Meyer’s staff in Jacksonville.Chris Doyle in 2018 at the University of Iowa, where he was the football team’s strength and conditioning coach.Credit…Charlie Neibergall/Associated PressFeb. 12, 2021Updated 9:36 p.m. ETAn organization that promotes diversity in the N.F.L. on Friday criticized the Jacksonville Jaguars’ recent hiring of Chris Doyle, who left the University of Iowa’s football staff last year after a number of current and former Hawkeyes players said he had fostered a culture of bullying and racism.A statement from the Fritz Pollard Alliance, which is named for the first Black head coach in the N.F.L., said the Jaguars’ decision to make Doyle their director of sports performance was “simply unacceptable.”“Doyle’s departure from the University of Iowa reflected a tenure riddled with poor judgment and mistreatment of Black players,” Rod Graves, the executive director of the Fritz Pollard Alliance, said in the statement. “His conduct should be as disqualifying for the N.F.L. as it was for University of Iowa.”Doyle, who was Iowa’s strength and conditioning coach, reached a separation agreement with the university in June, ending two decades of work there.The Jaguars announced on Thursday that Doyle had joined the staff of Urban Meyer, who was named Jacksonville’s head coach last month. Meyer, who won two college national championships as the head coach at Florida and one at Ohio State, has not coached since 2018 and has never worked in the N.F.L. before.The hiring of Doyle, who is white, comes at a time of intense scrutiny of the N.F.L.’s hiring practices and questions about whether minority candidates for coaching jobs have equal opportunities to be hired.“I’ve known Chris for close to 20 years,” Meyer said on Thursday when questioned about hiring someone who had been accused of mistreating Black athletes. Doyle was the strength coach at the University of Utah in the late 1990s, a few years before Meyer was hired as the head coach there.“Urban Meyer’s statement, ‘I’ve known Chris for close to 20 years,’ reflects the good ol’ boy network that is precisely the reason there is such a disparity in employment opportunities for Black coaches,” Graves said in the statement.Neither the N.F.L. nor the Jaguars responded to a request for comment on the Fritz Pollard Alliance’s statement.During a news conference last week, N.F.L. Commissioner Roger Goodell said that he was not satisfied with the rate at which coaches of color have been hired in the N.F.L., which has 32 teams.“It wasn’t what we expected,” he said of the diversity in the round of hirings after the 2020 season, “and it’s not what we expect going forward.”Of the seven head coaches hired since the end of the regular season, just two were nonwhite. Last year one of five head coaching jobs went to a minority candidate, and the year before just one in eight.Over the last three years 80 percent of head coaching jobs have gone to white candidates, though players of color made up 69.4 percent of the N.F.L. this season, according to the Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport.After the Jaguars hired Meyer and General Manager Trent Baalke, who are both white, last month, Graves praised the organization for interviewing several minority candidates and for seeking input from the Fritz Pollard Alliance.“I cannot argue that the process didn’t meet the standard of fair, open and competitive,” Graves told The Florida Times-Union.The hiring of Doyle, however, raised issues beyond the N.F.L.’s commitment to diverse hiring.Before Doyle left Iowa, Emmanuel Rugamba, a former Hawkeyes defensive back, gave multiple examples of the coach demeaning players with negative racial stereotypes. Rugamba said in a tweet that one day after a Black player walked away from Doyle, the coach said, “Why you walking wit all that swagger I’ll put you back on the streets.”James Daniels, a Chicago Bears offensive lineman and a former Hawkeye, tweeted over the summer: “There are too many racial disparities in the Iowa football program. Black players have been treated unfairly for far too long.”Doyle also presided over an off-season workout in 2011 that resulted in the hospitalization of 13 players.AdvertisementContinue reading the main story More

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      Urban Meyer to Make N.F.L. Jump With Jacksonville Jaguars

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      AdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storyUrban Meyer to Make N.F.L. Jump With Jacksonville JaguarsMeyer coached Florida and Ohio State to national championships before retiring in 2018. He agreed to take over the Jaguars, who are expected to draft Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence first over all.Urban Meyer has not coached since retiring in 2018, citing health problems. That year an investigation revealed he had protected a longtime assistant with a history of domestic abuse.Credit…Jeff Gross/Getty ImagesVictor Mather, Ken Belson and Jan. 14, 2021Updated 7:30 p.m. ETUrban Meyer, the former Ohio State and Florida head coach who retired in 2018, will return to the sidelines as the coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars, his first N.F.L. job.“Urban Meyer is who we want and need, a leader, winner and champion who demands excellence and produces results,” Shad Khan, the team’s owner, said in a statement. “While Urban already enjoys a legacy in the game of football that few will ever match, his passion for the opportunity in front of him here in Jacksonville is powerful and unmistakable.”Meyer, 56, was a spectacularly successful and highly paid collegiate coach, winning national titles with Florida in 2006 and 2008 and Ohio State in 2014. He previously had successful stints at Bowling Green and Utah.In 2018, Meyer retired from the Ohio State job, citing health concerns, including headaches related to a congenital arachnoid cyst.Meyer had been suspended for three games earlier that year after an investigation revealed he had protected a longtime assistant, Zach Smith, with a history of domestic abuse. One trustee of the university said the punishment was too lenient.Meyer defended his actions and moved to another job in Ohio State’s athletic department.“I believe I will not coach again,” he said at the time.With Thursday’s announcement, Meyer is set to take over a Jaguars team that won its first game of the 2020 season against the Indianapolis Colts, then lost the following 15 games. When the season ended, Khan dismissed head coach Doug Marrone, who had taken the team to the A.F.C. championship game in 2017, but was 12-36 since.The Jaguars’ abysmal record will give them the top pick in this year’s draft, a selection they are likely to use on quarterback Trevor Lawrence of Clemson. That could quickly bring an end to the starting job of Gardner Minshew, the colorful but erratically performing starter for most of the last two seasons.Meyer already has a big following in Jacksonville, where many college football fans root for the Florida Gators, who play in Gainesville, just over an hour’s drive away. Meyer is the seventh coach of the Jaguars, who played their first N.F.L. game in 1995. The team has made the postseason only once since 2007.Few coaches have enjoyed greater dominance over the college game, where Meyer was 187-32 over 17 years as a head coach and won national championships at Florida and Ohio State with his spread offenses that included quarterback Tim Tebow, the winner of the 2007 Heisman Trophy, and Aaron Hernandez, the star tight end whose pro career ended after he was accused of murder. At Utah, where Meyer was 22-2 in two seasons, he coached Alex Smith, the top pick in the 2005 N.F.L. draft who now plays for the Washington Football Team.But health troubles publicly trailed Meyer in the last decade of his career in the college ranks. In 2009, he announced that he would resign as Florida’s coach, only to reverse his decision a day later. At the time, he suggested “self-destructive” work habits were having a detrimental effect on his health. After a leave of absence, he went 8-5 the next season and exited Florida, saying it was “what’s best for the University of Florida, my players and myself and my family.”He was absent from the sideline for just one season before Ohio State hired him and set a proud program toward another stirring run, including a championship in the inaugural season of the College Football Playoff era.It was at Ohio State, though, that Meyer’s career took its greatest scar. The university suspended Meyer for several games in 2018 after he failed to properly report domestic abuse allegations against an assistant coach and misled reporters about his knowledge of the assistant’s history. When Meyer retired from coaching at the university later that year, he again cited his health.Still, Meyer remained a deeply appealing prospective coach. He was linked to openings, or potential vacancies, at the University of Southern California and the University of Texas, reportedly resisting the latter in recent months because of his health.AdvertisementContinue reading the main story More