For Jaguars head coach Urban Meyer, the goals at the moment would seem to be basic things like, “Win my first NFL game” and “Save my job.” But Meyer has set a much more ambitious goal for his team than just that.
Meyer said today that he wants his team to rush for 250 yards both passing and rushing in a game, according to Mark Long of the Associated Press.
That is unlikely. So far this season, no NFL team has managed 250 yards both passing and rushing in any game. The last time it happened was Christmas of last season, when the Saints did it against the Vikings, in a game best remembered for Alvin Kamara scoring six touchdowns. Suffice to say, this year’s Jaguars do not have the offense of last year’s Saints.
During his time coaching Ohio State, Meyer also set that goal for his team. But the difference is, at Ohio State, where Meyer’s teams were usually much more talented than their opponents, that was actually a realistic goal. To set that goal for the Jaguars does nothing but add fuel to the criticism that Meyer doesn’t grasp the differences between coaching in college and coaching in the NFL.