Jacksonville Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence says coaching change gives locker room 'focus'

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Urban Meyer is a bad dude and a bad football coach according to Orlovsky.

Dan Orlovsky was critical of Urban Meyer's tenure as head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars. (1:45)

7:44 PM

The Jacksonville Jaguars have had a lot of trouble this year, but they want a little peace and quiet for the rest of the year.

Darrell Bevell was named the interim head coach after Meyer was fired. The franchise has been in chaos since Meyer was hired.

Lawrence said that Bevell is very even keel and that he served as the Detroit Lions' interim head coach for the final five games of the 2020 season. The same person always gets high or low. That's something that I respect and I can level with.

That's the biggest thing we need right now. Someone who is consistent and will push past it.

There's a lot to push past, including the hiring of strength coach Chris Doyle, who was accused of making racist remarks and bully Black players at Iowa.

The videos show Meyer in a Columbus, Ohio, restaurant with a woman that was not his wife.

The experiment with Tim Tebow was a flop.

The league fined the Jags and Meyer for excessive contact during a June 1 activity.

Marvin Jones left the facility because he was upset with Meyer, Josh Lambo alleged that Meyer kicked him during the warm ups, and reports of Meyer calling his assistant coaches loser.

So much more.

Lawrence and owner Shad Khan both characterized it as drama and it undoubtedly had an impact on the performance on the field. The Jaguars have lost four times in franchise history, the most recent being a 20-0 loss at Tennessee.

"I wouldn't believe you if you told me how this year was going to go," Lawrence said. The coaching change brings some clarity to the guys in the locker room. I wouldn't say relief, but I would say just bring some clarity and direction.

It's been hard to last the last week with everything going on, but we really want to finish the season strong. There's a lot of things being stirred up by the outside. That made things worse, but also everything that's going on.

It's hard to be focused when there are so many things going on.

The atmosphere inside the locker room is definitely what Lawrence and Robert said it was.

"I think focused is the right thing to do," he said. "I feel like there has been a lot going on and to see how everybody is focused on what's going on around in the locker room and trying to figure out what has been going on on the field and trying to make changes." I think that's the right word to use. It was amazing to see how the offense attacked the day after practice. I think we need to see that. It's a boost of confidence and I love seeing that.

" I think the right word is focus. The focus in the locker room is where it needs to be. The guys that are playing are the main focus. It's been looking good in the locker room.

Jihad Ward did several handstands at practice on Thursday as the mood was definitely lighter around the facility.

Bevell has already made a few changes, one of which is that he's going to coach from the sideline the rest of the season. He said he's been there every year except this one, when Meyer moved him to the box.

It's been strange to be up in the box these last 13 weeks. Bevell said that he's excited to get back down there and will call plays this week but will re- evaluate that next week. There's a lot of energy when you're on the field. It's like playing a video game when you are up there. It's so boring. It's good to be around the guys, the interaction is better, and communication is better with the players. I have great communication with the coaches on the headset, but being able to see their eyes and talk to them is a different experience.

Bevell confirmed that Meyer left the facility around 5 p.m. The staff worked on the game-plan for Sunday's home game against the Texans. Bevell said he hadn't spoken with Meyer. There were reports of tension between Meyer and the assistant coaches.

Bevell said he has a lot of respect for Meyer and what he did for him and his family. I told the team that today is a new day and we're not looking back. I want it to be on Houston because we're moving forward and I just want to move ahead.