Gus Bradley Continues to Answer Questions About Quarterbacks

Despite his consistent message about sitting his first round draft pick, head coach Gus Bradley is going to become very familiar with one question over the next few weeks – why isn’t Blake Bortles starting?

That’s the question Peter King raised to coach Bradley on his MMQB site in the short video highlighted below.

It’s hard not to be impressed by how fluent Gus Bradley has become in coach speak by his 2nd season as head coach, and that’s not a backhanded compliment at all. Gus Bradley’s leadership style has always been about having a consistent message and a positive culture instilled through the balance of genuine competition and relating to the players.

In the video, Bradley focuses on how the team wants to play fast, and he emphasizes how experience is a key factor in doing that. Chad Henne already has a year under his belt and can rely more on acting via the constraints of the playcall instead of thinking about and trying to remember the play.

If playing fast was a concern for Blake Bortles going into camp and the preseason, it’s hard to really say it’s something to worry about going forward. Bortles has shown he has a high level of comfort with the playbook by calling effective audibles and showing the ability to direct the offense in the 2-minute drill. This guise of a mentorship and learning from the bench is fine in the preseason when Bortles can still get snaps with the 2nd team in an exhibition game, but it’s hard not to think it’s going to become a hindrance in the regular season when the coaching staff is going to be more focused on winning and the upcoming opponent than getting the “backup” quarterback reps.