A Jaguars Season Ticket Owner's Look at Keeping Jack Del Rio

I have to be honest in saying that I was a JDR fan at some point in his stint with the Jaguars.  I wasn't a fan of his hiring though.  I thought the Jaguars were making a huge mistake in getting rid of Tom Coughlin.  But JDR got the Jaguars to a winning record of 9-7 in his second year and built onto that in 2005 with a 12-4 record and a Wild Card game.  They would lose to the Patriots.  But, his mediocre ways would begin to surface the next season with an 8-8 record and 3rd place in the AFC South.  It seemed that it was just a blip on the radar and nothing to be concerned with when he led the Jags to an 11-5 record the next season.  They became the first team to beat the Pittsburgh Steelers twice in Pittsburgh in one season by beating them in the Wild Card game that season.  The Jaguars looked to be firing on all cylinders going into the 2007 Divisional game against the Patriots,  It would be a game that would define the franchise for the next 3 seasons.  JDR's Jaguars never looked as though they would ever get over that loss. Mediocrity that was seen in that 2006 season, turned out to not be a blip, but a foreshadowing of what was to come.  The Jaguars would finish last in the AFC South the next two years after that loss in Foxboro.  The 2010 season looked like an almost fairytale story, JDR was a black horse candidate for Coach of the Year and all the Jaguars would need to do to clinch the AFC South crown for the first time in franchise history was beat the Colts one more time.  It wasn't to be and the Jaguars were doomed to continue their December mini-seasons of adversity by losing that game and the last 2 games of the season.

It was time for change and the city of Jacksonville called for it.  No, the fans demanded it from Wayne Weaver.  The cries and demands would fall on deaf ears.  Weaver would keep JDR on for one last season and give him a public ultimatum; win the AFC South or pack your bags.  The interesting thing is we heard this same line before from Mr. Weaver after the 2009 season.  So why as a fan should anyone believe him now?  When owners around the league say you are cheap and then you prove it time again by holding onto a coach that can’t win the big games, you lose the faith of the fan base.  Jacksonville stood up for the Jaguars this season by buying tickets and ending the blackouts that plagued this team in the 2009 season.  Wayne Weaver spit upon that faith the fans showed the Jaguars and it is going to be a daunting task to get it back.

Now, I understand the reasoning behind his decision.  With no CBA agreement and a possible lockout, why pay two coaches to do nothing.  I get that, but doing nothing is not satisfactory either.  It's time for change in Jacksonville and it's time to do it now, not later.  But sadly, nothing will happen until the conclusion of the 2011 season, if there is a 2011 season.  Could we see JDR fired during the season?  It's possible and I'll tell you why.  By refusing to allow Dirk Koetter to interview for a lateral move to another team, Mr. Weaver is saying, I need him here in case I have to fire Del Rio during the 2011 season.  Yes, Dirk will be the new Jaguars coach if JDR can't perform.  You heard it here first.  I think that scenario would make a lot of Jaguars fans very happy.

Tell me what you think in the comments below!