One practice play perfectly captures the struggles of Blake Bortles and teammates appear to be growing frustrated
By most accounts, it has not been a pleasant training camp for Blake Bortles.
After struggling mightily in 2016, throwing 23 touchdowns to 16 interceptions with a 59% completion rate, most of the training camp headlines around Bortles have focused on his inaccuracy.
There was a five-interception day at practice earlier in August and a scrimmage-opening interception in a joint practice with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
On Tuesday, we got a glimpse of what looks like growing frustration among Jaguars players. In a one-on-one with Bucs' cornerback Robert McClain in what looked like a red-zone drill, Allen Robinson could not get to the ball because Bortles overthrew it and it sailed out of bounds. Video from Pewter Report shows Robinson saying, "Keep that s--- in-bounds, bro" afterward.
Robinson's response seems to be part of a growing disenchantment with Bortles. After a promising 2015 season, Bortles regressed in 2016, both in accuracy and mechanics. This offseason, for the third year in a row, the Jaguars said Bortles would be working on his mechanics. From the sounds of it, there hasn't been a ton of improvement.
With new management and a new head coach in Tom Coughlin and Doug Marrone, respectively, it's worth wondering how much longer Bortles will keep the starting job. Some people consider this a make-or-break year for Bortles; with a talented incoming quarterback draft class, if Bortles and the Jaguars struggle again, the front office may be looking at replacements next May.