By DAVID CLIMER
The Tennessean

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Surf to a certain Internet outpost and you'll find a Web site intended to incite. Let your mouse to do the walking to: www.firetomcoughlin.com.

There, you are provided with an e-mail link to the man who can do exactly that - Jacksonville Jaguars owner Wayne Weaver.

Don't think Weaver isn't at least considering his options relative to the continued employment of Jags coach Tom Coughlin. Even without any fan participation or e-mail encouragement, Weaver has joined the ranks of NFL owners who have dropped a few discouraging words into their conversations before, during or after games this season.

At the moment, Weaver says he has "confidence in Tom and his coaching staff," but will "sit down and review our performance and determine what changes are necessary" at the end of the season. Doesn't sound like Coughlin is getting a Christmas bonus, does it?

It is a sign of the times. NFL owners used to be seen and not heard. No more. Some eschew the comforts of the luxury suite for the visibility of the sidelines in the final two minutes of a game and occasionally offer some rather direct criticism of a coach's performance.

Sort of gives new meaning to the phrase Money Talks, doesn't it?

When Bud Adams offered his view that "it looks to me like we're getting out-coached" after the Tennessee Titans' fourth straight loss on Oct. 6, the words carried extra weight because the statement was so out of character. Adams usually suffers in silence.

And while Jeff Fisher denies that Adams' off-the-cuff comment precipitated any change, the fact that the Titans have won eight of nine games in the weeks that have followed stands on its own merit. Considering what has happened since he blew off steam, Adams might wish he had cleared his throat a couple of weeks earlier.

"He was frustrated. I was frustrated. A lot of us were frustrated," Fisher said.

Frustration is one thing. But a willingness to criticize a coach to a sound-bite conscious media is something else. And there's a lot of carping going around by some very big NFL fish.

- Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, on Dave Campo: "The players played well enough to win. We screwed it up."

- Detroit Lions owner William Clay Ford, on Marty Mornhinweg: "The team's been very disappointed. ... I'm just undecided. I really don't know what I'm going to do. I'm not going to let it linger too long."

- New York Giants co-owner Robert Tisch, on Jim Fassel: "I have no feeling one way or the other. ... I will be discussing it with my associates at the end of the season."

This is the new world order of NFL ownership. Insufferable dot.com billionaires like Washington Redskins owner Daniel Snyder are used to buying their way out of any problem. So when the combination of a salary cap and a ball that doesn't always bounce the way it should produces less than desired results, these owners speak first and ask questions later.

"A lot of these new owners don't know anything about football," said Jaguars defensive end Marco Coleman. "They're like Dan Snyder, who's just a fan with a big wad of money."

But ownership has its privileges. With millions at stake and with egos running amok, some owners are willing to put their mouths where their money is.

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