The Jacksonville Jaguars are doing all the right things regarding Blake Bortles

The Jacksonville Jaguars are handling Blake Bortles as well as you could ask from the team.

The immediate reaction to the Jacksonville Jaguars signing quarterback Blake Bortles to a three-year, $54 million deal was undoubtedly a mixed bag. Whether locally or nationally, opinions scoped both ends of the proverbial spectrum.

But as the structured details of the contract began to come to light, it painted a picture of a extension that was a win-win for both parties.

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Bortles is granted the opportunity to continue to prove he can be the leader asked of him, and to stay right where he wanted to be. Meanwhile, the organization created cap space for other potential signees, gets to keep the continuity of an AFC runner-up team in place at the sport’s most important position, and can still exit after next season without crippling repercussions if things don’t work out like they hope.

And now with the favorable deal in place, the front office is saying all the right things when it comes to their quarterback:

Putting emphasis on the fact that this is not a bridge gap deal, and the team expects Bortles to be the long-term answer is exactly the corner the Jaguars should be in heading into 2018.

It’s no secret that there have been concerns with Bortles’ consistency. And Jacksonville could have decided to throw cash to secure an alternate option at the position without drawing much outrage.

But the Jaguars have put their faith in a guy that stepped up when the lights were brightest in 2017. Yes the defense was, and still will be the lifeblood of the team, but Jacksonville was ten minutes away from the Super Bowl with Bortles, and not despite him. The team absolutely still needs to select a quarterback early in April’s draft to groom and have wait in the wings, but this is Bortles’ team in 2018.

With structuring a deal that benefits both sides, while still expressing faith that Bortles can be the guy long term, the Jacksonville Jaguars are pushing all the right buttons.