The problem lies with all three.  All three must go.  The sooner they do, the better for this franchise.  Firing gus at the end of the year will appease many fans.  It will not be enough.  ALL three must go.

 

 

Here is my reasoning:

 

I think we are all in agreement that Gus needs to go.  The reasons are numerous and have been talked about countless times.

 

 

I personally have seen enough from Blake Bortles.  I would let him play out the rest of this year.  By the end of this year, he will have ~3 years of experience and game tape to really evaluate him.  I would be very aggressive in free agency and/or the NFL draft to get my next QB.  It doesn't have to be the next "franchise QB"...  He will be under contract, so we don't need to just cut him for the sake of cutting him.  Maybe we trade him, maybe he's the backup, it doesn't matter.  But he should not be on the field playing football as our primary option.  If he is, the best we can hope for is another 5-7 win year in year 5 of the rebuild.  He is a QB who is just as flawed now as he was as a senior in college.  He was a project that just flat out did not work out.  The sooner we can see that with objectivity, the faster we will get a winner.

 

Now, Caldwell seems to be a guy a lot of fans are still OK with.  I would consider keeping him but I simply don't trust him with regards to the QB.  I think Caldwell plays favorites and will sink or swim with his own guys (his own draft picks).  He will keep Bortles as the starting QB in 2017 which I think will be another lost year for us.  Blake will "earn it" because Dave will not provide him with adequate competition.  To prevent that from happening, the three amigos all need to go, and they all need to go at the same time.

Caldwell has done well with some selections, but he has missed on the most important:  The head coach.  His entire first draft class.  His QB.  There are other examples.  He's had nice selections as well, but I think any reasonable GM would've done just as well if not better with the resources he was given 4 years ago.

 

 

Before you start crying about "not wanting to start from scratch"... we don't have to and we will not.  Khan should interview GMs and coaches who say that this roster is a roster they can win with.  You don't give them a 4 year plan.  We have enough talent on both sides of the ball to be at least average with average QB play.   I guarantee you there are coaches out there that would love this job (just like any other job) and can actually win with this team NOW.  There will not be any mass exodus of players.  A new set of eyes will come in and objectively look at what we have.  Suddenly guys like Joeckel and Bortles are not playing for this team anymore.  Guys who have performed, like Linder, Telvin, Ramsey, etc of course stay.  

 

We all want a winner in Jacksonville.  I know this year is lost already.  Firing Olson and promoting Gus Jr. isn't going to solve anything.  It was a blame game, a shift away from what the real problem is:  The entire state of this franchise.  For that, Dave, Gus, and Bortles are responsible.  

---