Another way to look at this though is how tough mentally Blake is, and/or will become during this season despite the obvious and glaring lack of talent around him on offense. And for those of you who said this front office didn't have a choice, I disagree. There is always a choice. Always. Because as soon as this team gets blown out despite the change at QB, the fair weather fans of this fanbase are still going to complain, gripe, question, doubt, and boo the offense. Period.

 

I fear he may fold. But based on his pre-season performance and grit and ability in the pocket. I am not overly fearful. Let's make things clear, similiar to what happened with Gabbert. Again, it was obvious, the lack of talent on offense around him. The instability of the running game. And the defense wasn't really doing this team any favors as well. The big difference though is just his overall poise and ability IMHO. Gabbert still showed the same tendencies he's always had here in Jacksonville as a 49er during this past pre-season. Meanwhile, we saw Bortles stand right in the face of pressure, get his helmet knocked off, scramble for good gains, shake defenders off and make tough throws on the run, etc. So in that department. I am not concerned.

 

Now, with that said, behind this pass protection (if that's what you want to call it), here is my TRUE fear. The kid is not unbreakable, and he's not superhuman. I am worried that he's going to get rocked around too much in the pocket, and therefore, get knocked out for a prolonged period of time with a bad injury. I hope that doesn't happen. But if we continue to see blown protection like we've had, it could very well end up being the case. Any kind of injury will hinder his development (obviously). So we don't want that. Caldwell and Bradley have made the switch. From now on, it's all about building around his abilities as a QB and building a defense that can get the job done. I assume they're on a four year plan. Last year was year one, this year we're still seeing a young roster develop, next year, it MUST show signs of improvement (nothing less than .500 or better), and then by 2016, we should be expecting legitimate talks of either a wildcard play-off apperance or in the hunt for one during November/December.

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