Will Urban Meyer leave the Jaguars at the altar?

Urban Meyer can have the job if he wants it, but will he leave the Jacksonville Jaguars at the altar?

All signs point to Urban Meyer as the favorite to be the next Jacksonville Jaguars head coach, if he wants the job. From putting feelers out for a coaching staff, to rumors he’s got a hand-picked general manager that’s already in the building, it has felt inevitable if the two sides are wiling to tango.

But Meyer made sure it got out that another team, the Los Angeles Chargers, was possibly in the mix to hire him. It was a clear leverage play, as the Jaguars dare have a full head coaching search. The request was put in before they met with Meyer last Friday, but the Jaguars interviewed Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator Arthur Smith on Sunday night.

Will Urban Meyer leave the Jaguars at the altar?

A broad dynamic that’s in play for the Jaguars is the looming idea they’d move to London. Owner Shad Khan’s vision for the area around the stadium took a hit on Tuesday when Jacksonville City Council voted down the so-called “Lot J” development proposal. The idea of the Jaguars playing more games in London has a shining light on it now, more than ever.

The Jaguars can, and seem willing to, give Meyer as much control over the football operation as he wants. He won’t find that anywhere else in the NFL, and as a former college coach who is used to dictating everything in a program the promise of full control is surely a factor for him.

Appearing on Good Morning Football Wednesday morning, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport said Meyer has yet to firmly and finally decide if he wants to coach in the NFL. And presumably until he does, the Jaguars’ coaching search is at a standstill.

With Meyer it’s hard to know what his intentions are (or will be). Are the health concerns that were deemed the primary factor in not one but two decisions to quit coaching still there? Is he waiting for the right opportunity to return to coaching at the college level? The Jaguars need complete answers to those questions, and some others, if they haven’t gotten them already. Otherwise, they should already be preparing to pivot to other candidates to ultimately replace Doug Marrone if Meyer continues to hesitate.