Blake Bortles: ‘Guys are sick and tired of being below average’

In his make or break year, Blake Bortles has voiced his frustration and acknowledged how everyone feels about the Jacksonville Jaguars’ recent struggles.

The Jacksonville Jaguars have been extremely bad for the better part of a decade.

There’s not much arguing against that stance.

Former head coach Gus Bradley compiled a historically awful win-loss record before his dismissal last year, an event that was long overdue.

While excuses have been rampant for the Jaguars’ overwhelming incompetence, it’s now come to point where it would be perplexing if they didn’t win a respectable amount in 2017. The team is clearly more talented than it has been in the last several seasons and the coaching has been upgraded significantly.

The fans are tired of watching this team lose and, as Blake Bortles puts it, so are the players.

Bortles has always been terrific with the media and has consistently said the right things when it comes to how the team has performed on the field. It’s also encouraging to see he is planning on working even more on his mechanics before training camp. His approach and the way he has discussed it publicly is exactly what fans should be hoping for.

While it would be great if Bortles cleaned up his mechanics, there’s more work to be done for him to be a viable NFL quarterback. Bortles still made far too many silly mistakes for a third year quarterback in 2016 and his decision making continues to confound. While the flashes of athletic ability and playmaking outside of the pocket show why many were high on Bortles as a prospect, it means nothing if he can’t develop into a functional pocket passer. Sustainability in the NFL as a quarterback is heavily reliant on being able to operate within the pocket.

As Bortles said, we’re all sick and tired of seeing this team lose. If he can take a big step forward in 2017 then that feeling will almost certainly subside.