Blake Bortles and Scott Milanovich may be the most important pairing in 2017
By Luke Sims
As the Jacksonville Jaguars work to salvage Blake Bortles and turn him into a viable starter in the NFL, the new hiring of quarterbacks coach Scott Milanovich proves critical.
Jacksonville Jaguars executive vice president of football operations, Tom Coughlin, stated “Working closely with offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett, we expect the quarterback position to deliver positive results under Scott’s direction and guidance” shortly after announcing Scott Milanovich as the new quarterbacks coach working with Blake Bortles.
This is the kind of move that will either make or break the team. As the quarterback goes, so goes the team and Bortles is tied heavily to the Jags. General manager Dave Caldwell believes the Jags can win a Super Bowl with Bortles but his rollercoaster performances as a three-year veteran have not necessarily been promising. The regression in 2016 was particularly alarming, making the retention of offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett a critical move for the team and the new selection of Milanovich as quarterbacks coach equally important.
How Milanovich works with Hackett will be something to watch. Likely a relationship that will stay under the radar, the performance of Bortles may provide the biggest indication of a successful match between the quarterbacks coach and the offensive coordinator.
The Bortles-Milanovich relationship should not be overlooked either. Hackett was the quarterbacks coach in the first half of the season before being elevated to coordinator following Greg Olson’s mid-season firing. Continuity is important, but Milanovich is not hired to simply conform with the past. He will have to bring some wrinkles and new philosophies to fixing Bortles’ mechanics and nurturing him into a winning quarterback.
Milanovich is moving on from the turmoil surrounding the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League (he resigned as head coach following the dismissal of the team’s general manager). Milanovich has experience in the NFL, NFL Europe, the XFL, the Arena Football League, and the CFL. His extensive experience has led to success in the coaching arena, belonging to three Grey Cup champion teams with the Montreal Alouettes and including leading the Argonauts to victory as head coach in 2012.
Whether Milanovich can bring that success to the NFL is yet to be seen. He has not been a part of the NFL as a coach, but his past success in the CFL does provide a promising example on which to extrapolate. His past success could very well translate to the Jaguars and becoming a critical component of a raw quarterback’s team.
Next: Can Blake Bortles really win a Super Bowl?
At this point it can’t be said if he will be successful or not. A lot relies on his ability and his relationship with Bortles. Still, the wealth of experience he brings should provide some reassurance for Bortles as he goes through his own offseason work.