(ThyBlackMan.com) Jacksonville Jaguars remain the favorites to win the AFC South Division but they have been interesting for more than quarterback Trevor Lawrence throwing touchdown passes or edge rusher Josh Allen pressuring opposing quarterbacks. The Jaguars as a franchise have made sports headlines beyond their win-loss record in 2023. Here are three major off-the-field reasons why the most interesting NFL franchise in 2023 have been the Jacksonville Jaguars and that doesn’t even include current wide receiver Calvin Ridley’s return to football after a year-long punishment by the NFL for sports gambling:
#3: NFL football at a NASCAR Racetrack?
Big-time sporting events being played at unique venues has no longer become surprising. The National Hockey League does it with outdoor hockey games, Major League Baseball has gotten publicity from its “Field of Dreams” games, and even college football has bowl games played at MLB stadiums linked to the New York Yankees. It is a bit strange that an NFL team might make a famous NASCAR racetrack the site of its home NFL games.
A lot of NFL fans might not realize that the Jacksonville Jaguars could need a temporary home when the NFL team’s EverBank Stadium gets renovated a few years from now and one of the options is Daytona International Speedway. Daytona International Speedway president Frank Kelleher believes NFL games would be played on the existing grass area between the track’s start/finish line and The Speedway grandstands hold more than 100,000 people.
#2: Jaguars coach makes LGBTQ sports history
There have been some incremental improvements in sports when it comes to respect for those in the LGBTQ community. There have been openly gay male athletes in the NBA and NFL over the past decade. In July 2023, Jacksonville Jaguars associate strength coach Kevin Maxen became the first publicly out male coach in a major U.S. men’s professional sports league.
The words that Kevin Maxen supplied for his reasoning to make the public announcement highlight why this is news in the first place. Maxen quoted, “You have other coaches who have significant others, and they’re talking about their significant others,” he added, “And I felt guilty that I couldn’t do the same thing, that I was letting myself down.” It’s terrible that a person feels like they cannot share the joy of their relationships in conversation with their peers. That is a larger societal issue related to homophobia and ignorance.
#1: Millions of dollars stolen from the Jaguars for years!?
It is always fascinating to hear stories of billion-dollar companies being “victims” of theft. The word “victims” is used loosely because it can be argued that in today’s society, corporate employers steal billions of dollars from workers every year by paying unlivable wages, making employees work off the clock, and other actions.
Amit Patel, a former financial planning manager for the Jacksonville Jaguars, made $22 million in fraudulent charges through the Jaguars’ corporate virtual credit card system between September 2019 and February 2023. Patel was fired by the team earlier this year. Apparently, Patel had a lot of fun with the money using the money to gamble, buy a condo in Florida, pay for travel on private jets and in luxury hotels for him and his friends, buy a Tesla Model 3 and a Nissan pickup truck, and purchase cryptocurrency, sports memorabilia, a $95,000 watch, sports tickets, and more. He has already pled guilty and he will be facing serious prison time.
Staff Writer; Mark Hines