The Jacksonville Jaguars’ quarterback battle is over. Blake Bortles will be their starter when they begin (and end?) the season on Sep. 10 in Houston. The team announced the news on Saturday morning.
Blake Bortles reclaims the starting job. Jaguars surrender the season early.
It’s a terrible move for the Jaguars.
Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
Why choose Bortles? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ That’s as good a reason as any. It probably has more to do with how Bortles and Chad Henne played in Jacksonville’s third preseason game on Thursday. Bortles was 12-for-16 with 125 yards, a touchdown and an interception. Henne was 8-for-13 with 73 yards.
Beyond that, it’s a baffling decision.
Go deeper: Or not. The only way the Jags can at least try to survive with Bortles under center is turn him into a game manager, like a third-shift backup assistant manager. His biggest weakness is his lack of accuracy.
He’s got 51 career interceptions. And he hasn’t shown any hint that he might be better this year. He threw at least five interceptions in one practice this month. His top receiver was heard telling him to “fucking keep that shit in bounds, bro!” at another practice.
Bortles has thrown 69 career touchdowns. Only five of those came when the Jaguars had a lead. FIVE.
What’s next? Not much. The Jaguars have shown pretty consistently that they can’t win with Bortles at QB. There’s no reason to expect that to change this year, even with more emphasis on the running game.
A day ago, there was some talk that Bortles might get cut before the season started. That would’ve given the Jaguars a way out of paying the $18 million for his fifth-year option in 2018. That money is fully guaranteed in the event of an injury, so playing him this year potentially puts the Jags at risk for one more year of playing for the mistake they made with the third overall pick in the 2014 draft.
Fan reaction: Here’ a little sampling from our friends at Big Cat Country:
Well, there’s always 2018!
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