Why the LA Chargers should not be interested in Urban Meyer

Urban Meyer is a potential NFL head coach candidate that the LA Chargers should not be interested in.

The LA Chargers are likely going to be looking for a new head coach after this season. While nothing is set in stone, it would be surprising to see the franchise hold onto Anthony Lynn after two losing, disappointing seasons.

But hey, the front office appears to love Anthony Lynn and his character, so I would not completely rule out Lynn hanging onto his job into 2021.

There are several head coach candidates that have been connected to the Chargers if the team does indeed part ways with Anthony Lynn. NFL coordinators such as Robert Salah, Eric Bienenemy and Brian Daboll are intriguing.

College coaches such as Jim Harbaugh and Urban Meyer have been getting attention from the fanbase on social media.

Meyer’s name has really picked up steam as ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on Sunday morning that NFL teams are asking Meyer about any potential interest to return to coaching. Naturally, the LA Chargers jump towards the top of the list.

A team with a fresh, new franchise quarterback in a brand-new stadium with several top-tier players at their position with good draft capital in 2021. That is an ideal job if I have ever heard one.

And while the idea of Meyer in LA is intriguing and many would say that the Chargers cannot possibly afford to pass on him, I ultimately think the team should. Meyer is a good coach, don’t get me wrong, but I am not convinced enough that he will translate well to the NFL.

Meyer is obviously an excellent recruiter but he also is a great college head coach for a reason. Meyer’s intensity may work in college when he has more control over the athletes, who are not yet doing this for a job. That is not going to work as well with grown men who are getting paid millions of dollars to play football.

Great college coaches do not always equal great NFL coaches and Meyer’s gameplans aren’t particularly inventive. His spread offense may not work as efficiently in the NFL as the talent gap between NFL teams is much smaller than that of the teams Ohio State plays.

I would not say he has been fantastic in developing quarterbacks, either. Alex Smith was the number one overall pick from Meyer’s days at Utah but that was nearly 16 years ago. Tim Tebow was really fun, but did not last in the NFL.

Justin Fields came in after Meyer retired from coaching. Dwayne Haskins has been bad, J.T. Barrett went undrafted, Cardale Jones is unemployed, Braxton Miller got turned into a wide receiver and was not a great one at that.

You could make the case that Ohio State was good despite having mediocre quarterbacks and that is a testament to Meyer, but the fact that he could not coach one legitimate NFL quarterback (unless Haskins flips a huge switch) should be worth mentioning.

Nick Saban has Tua Tagovailoa and Jalen Hurts (although Hurts made his mark at Oklahoma), Dabo Sweeney has Deshaun Watson and Trevor Lawrence (still in college but is the best quarterback prospect since Andrew Luck).

We have not even mentioned Meyer’s scandal-filled last season that may have played a role in his coaching retirement. The LA Chargers really seem to value character (that is why they love Lynn so much), so it is hard for me to see Tom Telesco and the Spanos family simply overlooking that aspect of Meyer.

Simply put: let another team role the dice on Meyer. The LA Chargers should be looking for a proven NFL coordinator that knows what it takes to succeed at this level.