Blake Bortles deserves better than tier 3
By Luke Sims
Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles was listed as a tier three quarterback by ESPN but deserves to be placed higher.
Straight off the bat, I don’t want to say that Mike Sando’s list over at ESPN is a bunch of hogwash, but it certainly isn’t kind to Jacksonville Jaguars starting quarterback Blake Bortles. This doesn’t mean it’s an arbitrary ranking (actually, the methodology deserves commendation) but it doesn’t favor some of those intangible leadership abilities that quarterbacks need and Bortles has.
The Jags were without a rudder until 2015’s emergence of Bortles as a solid starter (something tier three quarterbacks are considered by Sando’s list). He gave them an offensive identity (explosive, big play focused and risky) and helped win more games than the last three years.
He’s a leader and that counts for something. The traits (physical and technical) he has shown are also a suggestion that he can be a great quarterback, which is something some of the other quarterbacks above him (Derek Carr, Marcus Mariota, Jameis Winston, etc.) may have as well and are apparently better viewed for having despite comparable attempts to display them.
This isn’t to say that the coaches and evaluators polled for Sando’s list are incompetent or even wrong, but that for some reason the polling has favored quarterbacks comparable to Bortles more than they favored Bortles. He finished 22nd, falling behind many of his peers for little discernible reason.
While “legit starter but needs heavy run game/defense to win” is not a death knell for a quarterback entering his third season, it certainly isn’t an endorsement of his abilities as one of the more exciting young players at his position and a player who has given his team the best chance to win in almost a decade.
The list seems to disregard the fact that despite a below-average running game and terrible defense and teams knowing the Jags would air it out, Bortles still managed to be one of the most productive QBs in the NFL. Finished second in TDs and seventh in yards while being the most sacked QB (for the second straight season) is no joke.
Tier three and 22nd overall is, frankly, unacceptable. The five wins the Jags scraped together (especially since a couple were questionable) were a testament to Bortles and his ability to win without a defense and run game more than they were a testament to his inability to win without them. Given even a remotely competent defense and run game he should be able to get his team to 8-8 or better.
Related Story: Rest the starters in the preseason
That’s exactly what the Jags are banking on in 2016, having re-tooled the defense and upgraded the run game and offensive line. Expect Blake Bortles to overachieve compared to the ranking in Sando’s list and deliver one of the most exciting QB performances in the NFL for the second straight season.