Quote:First, you have to truly understand what the Jaguars QB situation has been like for the better part of recent memory (read; AWFUL). Bortles' positives give us hope considering his age and set of circumstances, it's only natural for fans to feel good about what we currently have relative to what came before. Few, if any of us, discount that he doesn't still have a long way to go to being great but the signs are there that he can. As this still painfully young offense matures and keeps with the current trend of improvement, it appears as if the sky is the limit. Will they achieve that? We hope so. We have to. Because we're fans. There are three mitigating factors, as I see it, relative to Blake's stats and what you think they should be: 1) our offensive line is offensive, 2) he attempts more passes per game than he probably should be and 3) he likes to push the ball downfield. Likely, option (3) is the most damning in this case (but also the most exciting), because by definition those are lower percentage passes than check downs and screens.

 

Secondly, I've said on numerous occasions that I personally have not watched Mariota play due to tack hate. I'm more than enough to remember 1999 and for that, I will always hate the tacks. They could move to the NFC North. Still hate. Not gonna change. Having said that, I think you have ample reason to be equally as encouraged about Marcus as we are with Blake. He isn't in an ideal situation like Bridgewater nor even Carr is and he's holding his own as far as I can tell. 

 

Regardless, we agree on one fundamental thing. The AFCS is better when we are all good like in years past. Our disdain for each other as fans aside, things are infinitely more interesting when we are all competitive...at least from where I sit.

 

I get the excitement, but for me that doesn't excuse irrationality. There are always mitigating factors that prevent a team operating under ideal circumstances, I think its the same for every team and QB. As I see it, the offensive line has been very problematic all season but at least some of the sacks allowed and pressures are due to Bortles own struggles. He oftentimes gets erratic in the pocket, sensing pressure when it isn't there or takes a sack unduly because he was unaware of the pressure. Not excusing the horrid line play, but other young inexperienced QBs are succeeding where he has struggled behind their comparably bad offensive lines - Mariota (32nd), Taylor (29th), Tannehil (26th), Bridgewater (24th), Cousins (23rd) and Winston(20th) who all have higher QB ratings, completion %, and YPA. I'm not saying those QBs are necessarily better, just that poor pass protection is not only thing keeping him from making good decisions, making accurate throws, and being an efficient QB. A lot of his failures are his own, whether it is a result of his inconsistent mechanics, erratic awareness in the pocket, or failing to see the field and go through his progression. Him throwing more passes and taking the shots downfield only complicate the analysis for many because they inflate his numbers in some respect (TDs, Yardage, YPA, and INTs as well), but really teams and QBs in particular succeed through efficiency and not volume. It becomes hard here to tease out how much of his success and how much of his failures are due to the system he is playing in and his own tendencies/abilities as a player. One things not to be overlooked though is the fact that they Jags  have a borderline top 5 WR corps with an all pro tight end, most QBs would kill to have the type of playmakers Bortles has, so in comparison to the rest of the NFL all those mitigating factors are just excuses in my opinion.

 

People can hate a team or player all they want, just for the principle of the matter. The rivalries and competitive spirit are what make the game fun and exciting. But to delude oneself from reality because of that bias it stupid. Anyway, I appreciate the non-hostile attitude.

---