Training camp is a time for players to work out the kinks, and there are bound to be mistakes. Blake Bortles took the field on Saturday night in front of a crowd of 4,015 Jaguars season ticket holders, and he threw five interceptions.
Blake Bortles threw 5 picks in one training camp practice
It was not a good day for the Jaguars quarterback.
Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports
Jeanna Kelley has been covering the Falcons for The Falcoholic since 2011 and the NFL for SB Nation since 2015.
Even in the context of training camp, that’s a lot of mistakes. Head coach Doug Marrone said he was “concerned.”
”We’re going to look at it,” Marrone said, via ESPN’s Michael DiRocco. “We’re going to look at those plays. If there’s any struggle or things we don’t like, then obviously we’re going to be smart enough to throw that crap out.”
Big Cat Country, SB Nation’s Jaguars blog, also seems concerned.
Tyler Patmon, who has started two NFL games in his three-year career and was not signed by any team in 2016, picked Bortles off twice. Linebacker Telvin Smith snagged one interception and ran it back for a touchdown, and linebacker Josh McNary and safety Tashaun Gipson each had a pick.
Ryan O’Halloran of Jacksonville.com charted Bortles as completing 13 of 22 passes, or 59 percent, in 11-on-11 drills. Three of his picks came in 11-on-11 work.
This is part of the reason Jaguars fans have such a hard time mustering any enthusiasm about training camp. Bortles threw 16 picks against just 23 touchdowns last season, and he has thrown 11 pick-sixes over his three-year career.
But it is just practice, and Bortles hadn’t thrown any picks over the first two days of training camp. And it’s unlikely that Chad Henne or Brandon Allen will beat out Bortles for the starting role. For Jaguars fans’ sake, here’s hoping Bortles shakes off his very bad day.
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