For all the glowing offseason pieces about the Jacksonville Jaguars, their season still rests on the throwing arm of Blake Bortles. Saturday's practices didn't go well for the quarterback.
Bortles threw five interceptions during practice, one of which was returned by Telvin Smith for a touchdown. Veteran reporter Michael DiRocco of ESPN characterized Bortles' performance as "one of the worst practices of his career." Woof.
The signal-caller spent the offseason working on his mechanical issues, in hopes of streamlining his throwing motion. Saturday's disaster is a reminder the 25-year-old still has a ways to go.
"I think anytime someone doesn't perform to what you want to do, you're concerned about it," coach Doug Marrone said. "He's not the only one that's out there. There's some good things.
"We're going to look at it. 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."
We aren't going to make a huge hullabaloo out of one blown practice by Bortles. But after an offseason of positivity, his disastrous day is noteworthy.
Marrone added he didn't offer encouragement to his starting quarterback after the poor day.
"If I've got to do that now, then we're going to be in trouble," the coach said.
The Jaguars own the talent on defense and playmakers around Bortles to push for a playoff spot in the AFC South. Even with all the talent, no team can win if their quarterback is turning the ball over with regularity. Expect the Jags to deploy a run-heavy offense early in the season, until Bortles shows he can manage the game without the backbreaking turnovers that have come to characterize his career.
