NFL: Urban Meyer's hostile character could cost Jacksonville Jaguars $3.5 million

When the Jacksonville Jaguars gambled on giving head coach Urban Meyer the opportunity of a lifetime to coach for the first time in the NFL, they would be paying a very high price in the short and medium term. In fact, one more consequence of this bad decision just blew up in their face and could cost them as much as $3.5 million.

After being hired in January 2021 as Jacksonville’s new head coach, Meyer’s explosive temperament began to emerge soon after. In July of that same year, Meyer was fined by the NFL for violating practice rules during organized team activities. But worse was to come.

In October, a video surfaced of him inappropriately touching a woman who is not his wife at his restaurant, Urban Meyer’s Pint House. The final straw came in December when he was acused to kick his own kicker, Josh Lambo during the team’s preseason. The Jags decided to terminate him on Dec. 16, making his NFL adventure last only 13 games, one of the shortest tenures in league history.

Why would Urban Meyer cause the Jacksonville Jaguars to lose $3.5 million?

It is precisely the incident just reported, in which Urban Meyer deliberately kicked Josh Lambo, that could cause the Jags to lose such a million-dollar sum. The current free agent player filed a lawsuit against the team for that amount, according to the Tampa Bay Times.

Lambo’s main argument is that Urban Meyer and his attitudes created a hostile work environment that affected his athletic performance. Thus, he is asking the Jacksonville Jaguars to pay him $3.5 million in compensation for emotional stress, which, according to Lambo, would be reflected in his inability to sleep and perform his job efficiently; damage to his reputation and legal costs.

Josh Lambo was cut by the Jacksonville Jaguars in October 2021 after a series of on-field mistakes and that is why his lawsuit seeks compensation for the $3.5 million, an amount the kicker was to receive in 2021 for being a veteran with more than 4 years of NFL experience.

Josh Lambo, former Jacksonville Jaguars’ kicker. (Logan Bowles/Getty Images)