The Jacksonville Jaguars are coming off yet another last-place finish in the AFC South. It’s the fourth time Jacksonville has finished in the division’s cellar since their last playoff appearance back in 2007.
Despite this, there is some strong young talent on the Jaguars’ roster. Back in 2015, the likes of quarterback Blake Bortles as well as receivers Allen Robinson and Allen Hurns had tremendous seasons. Unfortunately for the Jags, their defense was among the worst in the NFL.
General manager David Caldwell and Co. attempted to rectify this last offseason by exhausting a ton of capital on defense. And while that unit surely did improve, the Jaguars’ offense regressed big time during a 2016 campaign that saw them win just three games.
Ultimately, that cost head coach Gus Bradley his job.
Now looking to move forward with Doug Marrone at head coach and Tom Coughlin overseeing player personnel, Caldwell himself still seems to think the team can win with Bortles under center.
“I’ve said this time and time again: ‘I think we can win a lot of games with Blake; I think we can win a Super Bowl with Blake,” Caldwell said, via the team’s official website. “I think he needs to improve and I think we need to improve around him, too, in order for that to happen.”
In theory, it’s nice to have confidence in your quarterback. Though, reality itself tells us a story of a young signal caller that’s struggled with turnovers.
This past season saw Bortles throw 16 interceptions. That came on the heels of the former top-10 pick leading the league with 18 picks in 2015. All said, Bortles has seen 11 interceptions returned for touchdowns in his career.
Caldwell’s statement is interesting in that he had previously failed to commit to Bortles long term. Apparently, the promotion of Marrone from interim to full-time head coach has changed this.
Either way, the Jags need to actually earn a playoff spot before we can even talk about championship contention. That in and of itself will depend heavily on Bortles changing his turnover proneness.