Has Blake Bortles changed the Jacksonville Jaguars’ plans?
It’s been assumed that the Jacksonville Jaguars would start afresh at quarterback this offseason, but has Blake Bortles given them reason to pause?
Blake Bortles.
The enigma that is the Jacksonville Jaguars’ starting quarterback has been one of the most made-fun-of players in the entire NFL, but over the past month, he’s also been one of the league’s best.
How is this happening?
Bortles and the Jaguars are playing some of their best football in a very good season now, and they’ve just locked up a playoff spot. How Bortles and company handle the playoffs could very well determine his future with the team, but due a $19 million cap hit in 2018, has Bortles made himself indispensable to this team?
Will the Eli Manning rumors be nothing more than that?
Has Bortles altered the plans for the future in Jacksonville?
He may very well have. Check out some of these numbers:
Blake Bortles in our five AFC South games this season (4-1):
— Jacksonville Jaguars (@Jaguars) December 18, 2017
96 of 145 passing (66.2%)
1,313 yards (262.6/game)
8 TDs
2 INTs
107.6 passer rating.
Bortles hasn't thrown an INT against a divisional opponent since Week 2. https://t.co/lkka11jKEH
Blake Bortles This Month
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 18, 2017
NFL Rank
W-L 3-0 T-1st
Yds per att 9.9 1st
TD-Int 7-0 1st
Total QBR 85 1st
In essence, Bortles is playing the way the Jaguars expected him to play as a former third overall draft pick.
The UCF product has been the punchline of too many jokes, and now looks like a player that is elevating his offense in their most desperate time of need.
Bortles is working primarily with Dede Westbrook, Keelan Cole, and Jaydon Mickens. They don’t have Allen Robinson, Marqise Lee, or Allen Hurns.
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In their most recent drubbing of the Houston Texans, they didn’t have Leonard Fournette, either.
Bortles’ play in recent weeks has to have at least given the Jaguars’ front office something to think about, though they really can’t ignore the past few seasons in general when making decisions about the team going forward.
Perhaps Bortles has done enough this year to prove himself worthy of the starting position for next year, but at a $19 million price tag?
That’s a hefty price for any player, much less a quarterback that hasn’t played very well for the majority of his young career.
But it’s also very possible that Bortles has turned the corner for the Jaguars, and is on his way to becoming more of the player we saw flashes of when he threw over 30 touchdown passes in a season.
If that’s the case, the Jaguars are going to have to have some really difficult conversations over the offseason, when they have an opportunity to add a big-name quarterback if they so choose.