Jack Del Rio Fired in Jacksonville & Team Sold
The early part of the weekend included news leaks about the dismissal of several college coaches and, of course, the worst kept secret in recent coaching memory when Urban Meyer joined Ohio State. On Tuesday, a long-tenured NFL coach joined their ranks when the Jaguars dismissed Jack Del Rio.
Actually, Jacksonville became the sports capital of the world, if only for a morning, when the Del Rio firing was followed by news that the team had been sold to Shahid Khan. Khan is expected to keep the team in Jacksonville.
Just run it down:
- The team has played .390 ball (23-36) since the 2007 playoff appearance.
- The Jaguars have suffered through a dismal 3-8 season this year. The defense has played inspired ball at times, but MJD is the only stable, steady producer. The NFL world at large might have overlooked the continued futility because of the train wreck season suffered by the Colts, but the seat was already hot.
- Attendance issues have been well-documented. They’re putting tarps on unsold seats. Again, there’s a single player to market.
- Rookie starter Blaine Gabbert has been terrible, not that his receivers have helped much. Marcedes Lewis grossly underwhelmed after receiving a huge payday. Del Rio’s fate wasn’t helped by Tim Tebow’s success in Denver.
- It cleans the slate and allows Shahid Khan to rebuild the team and structure as the new owner. That press conference was slated to start as I wrote this piece.
The Jaguars have three games left on the home schedule. Stuff the holiday stockings with winnable games! OK, go cheer on MJD.
San Diego – 1,000- $21
Tampa Bay – 1,100 – $29
Indianapolis – 1,400 – $19 (Who wouldn’t want to sit and watch the Colts chase futility on New Year’s Day?)
