(08-17-2017, 09:28 AM)Jagwired Wrote: Folks, it's really simple. To not give the guy 3-5 games into the regular season with all the new parts in place makes zero football sense. Barring a complete meltdown in all his pre season work there is no better option. I personally believe he will do well. He has put in the work.

To deny the entirety of the suckness that has surrounded this team and lay it all on BB5 simply makes little to no sense IMO. Those claiming watching the last three years as their reasoning certainly have then also watched the complete failure on the field at all position groups. Correct?

I'm pretty much agreed with you on this; benching Bortles before the season has actually even started is premature, to say the least. Let's see him in action in a couple of real games this season before drawing any final conclusions. After all, do we really have anyone that would actually be a better choice at qb on our roster? Henne? Not. Allen? It doesn't look that way.

It has been said that by the time a qb is in his third year you should pretty much know what you've got. Well, this will be Bortles forth season... however, keep in mind that given the past 'coaching' situation and the absolutely abysmal state that our offensive line (and defense) had been in, it would have been challenging for any quarterback to look good.

Now... having said this, it does not change the fact that Bortles was drafted with poor passing technique. Bortles himself has said that he is not a 'natural' passer. The gravity of this fact can not be overstated. Bortles may never be particularly reliable as a passer; he is always going to have the tendency to lapse back into poor technique which will require constant work to overcome just to be an average NFL passer. The passing stats he was able to gain early on had far more to due with what is commonly referred to as 'garbage time' stats padding, and the fact that at that time both the Allens were fairly low on the radar screen of our opponents.

The one truly meaningful stat against Bortles is that he has not led this team to have any semblance of a winning season yet. Nevertheless, even this is not completely Bortles fault; in this area, the whole team from top to bottom has been at fault. Still, the odes lies with the quarterback as no other player on the field has so much influence over the success or failure of a team, both on offense and defense. By going consecutive 'three and outs' an offense will kill its own defense... and if you can't put more points on the board than the other team before the end of 60 minutes you lose.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not a Bortles sympathizer by any means; but by the same token, neither do I find it wise to demand change at the qb position just for the sake of change. Henne has proven he isn't the guy. Remember the woe and cry to pull Henne and put in Bortles only a few season ago? That's right. Allen hasn't done enough to sway the coaches thinking about him either apparently.

So we sink or swim with Bortles this season. It's pretty cut 'n dry. Next season, if we do badly enough this season, we may have a shot at someone better at the qb position. But until then, it is what it is. Let's hope for the best.

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