Jacksonville Jaguars: Saving Blake Bortles From Destruction

Jan 1, 2017; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles (5) throws a pass against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports /

One must give Jacksonville Jaguars GM David Caldwell some credit. When he makes a decision, he never wavers in his belief it will work out if given time.

Many people have already thrown in the towel on quarterback Blake Bortles. He crushed a lot of hopes in 2016 with the season he had. He finished with 3,905 yards, 23 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. Not the production people were hoping for from a guy entering his third season. Some felt whomever the next head coach would be likely would choose to move on from him. Instead they promoted Doug Marrone to the job, somebody who will look to help improve his flaws.

Caldwell is steadfast in his belief that Bortles is what the Jaguars need to reach the Promised Land and wasn’t shy about saying so either. He put it in precise words while down at the Senior Bowl in Mobile.

"“I’ve said this time and time again: ‘I think we can win a lot of games with Blake; I think we can win a Super Bowl with Blake. I think he needs to improve and I think we need to improve around him, too, in order for that to happen. . . . [He] is still young. He is still growing. . . .I think the future is bright for him. I have a lot of confidence in him. I know he has the makeup in terms of intelligence, competitiveness, his hard work, his effort, so if he has those things I think the rest of it will come.”"

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Some people will roll their eyes at this but it’s not entirely without merit. Bortles showed signs of progress in 2015 with over 4,400 yards and 35 touchdowns. A gigantic part of why he’s struggled for consistency so much is simple. The Jaguars offensive line is brutal. Not only is it terrible in pass protection, but it’s not much help in the running game either. In 46 career games, Bortles has been sacked a whopping 140 times. None of the running backs they’ve employed have cracked 800 yards in a season with him under center.

It’s hard for a young quarterback to thrive in the NFL when he has to do it himself, while taking too many hits no less. Bortles is playing like a quarterback who is slowly but steadily getting worn down from the beatings. If Caldwell wants to make his dreams come true, then his first and last priority should be stealing the blueprint from teams like Dallas and Oakland. Build up front and the rest will follow.

If and when he starts to realize he doesn’t have to do it all himself, he’ll played relaxed and with more confidence. Just how dangerous will he, Allen Robinson and Allen Hurns be then? The rest of the NFL is hoping they never have to find out.

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