Jaguars’ Blake Bortles takes responsibility for benching: ‘I put myself in this position’

Two days after shedding each his offensive coordinator and beginning job, Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles accepted responsibility for his demotion.  Assembly with the media for the primary time because the staff made sweeping modifications to the offense in response to a seven-game shedding streak that has doomed what was presupposed to be a profitable season, Bortles took the blame for his benching, lamented the firing of offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett, and vowed to assist Cody Kessler put together because the starter. “All of it. I put myself in this place,” Bortles mentioned, through the Jaguars’ web site. “I did not play adequate. I did not win soccer video games. I could not discover a option to get it carried out. When that occurs, it is a enterprise and all people understands that. I do not suppose there’s something private concerned. As a quarterback, I feel you will have one job and that is to win a soccer recreation. And if you happen to do not try this, your time’s in all probability restricted.” Bortles is not in any respect flawed. He is by no means actually performed like a starting-caliber quarterback over a prolonged time period, which is mirrored by his profession numbers (watch the Jaguars tackle the Colts on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET on CBS, stream on CBS All Entry or fuboTV, attempt it for free). He is finishing fewer than 60 % of his passes, averaging underneath seven yards per cross try, and has a passer ranking hovering simply above 80 in his five-year profession.  After which, there are the turnovers. Blake Bortles was the third general decide in the 2014 draft. Since that point he leads the league in interceptions, whole turnovers and decide sixes thrown. Just about the final triple crown you ever need to personal as a QB — trey wingo (@wingoz) November 27, 2018 That does not imply the entire Jaguars’ points this season are on Bortles — their protection has taken a considerable step again after rising as an unstoppable drive final season — however Bortles’ efficiency this 12 months ought to make it clear to the Jaguars’ decision-makers that they should improve at quarterback in the event that they need to compete with this core of gamers. In fact, the Jaguars ought to’ve acknowledged that earlier than the season and upgraded at quarterback when guys like Kirk Cousins and Teddy Bridgewater had been obtainable in free company, however they did not. As a substitute, they selected to offer Bortles an extension and now they’re going to be caught paying him $16.5 million subsequent season even when they minimize him. The Jaguars are caught attempting to repair an issue with out a straightforward resolution, as our Will Brinson wrote about in depth earlier Wednesday.  In that sense, whereas Bortles deserves blame for his poor performances, the Jaguars’ entrance workplace deserves extra of the blame for how this season has unfolded. What Bortles is doing is … enjoying like Bortles. The Jaguars anticipating Bortles to immediately morph into one other quarterback as a result of he performed nicely in stretches final season was all the time an unreasonable expectation. There is a motive why almost each soccer author advocated for the Jaguars to accumulate Cousins or Bridgewater in the offseason. Seemingly everybody however the Jaguars noticed this coming.  Do not blame Bortles for enjoying the identical form of soccer he is all the time performed. Blame the Jaguars for considering he would immediately rework into a very good quarterback when nearly the entire proof obtainable on the time instructed that Blake Bortles would proceed to play like Blake Bortles.  https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/jaguars-blake-bortles-takes-responsibility-for-benching-i-put-myself-in-this-position/