Jacksonville Jaguars rumors: Blake Bortles closing the gap on Chad Henne?
By Jack Crosby
Although the Jacksonville Jaguars selected quarterback Blake Bortles with one of the top picks in the 2014 NFL Draft, there has not been much talk about the rookie from UCF taking the field right off the bat, in front of veteran Chad Henne. But after the team’s scrimmage on Saturday night, and particularly the way Bortles performed, that talk might heat up a bit.
More from Jacksonville Jaguars
- NFL Power Rankings: Who is the best quarterback in each division?
- NFL Power Rankings: Which teams will have the best rushing attacks this season?
- NFL power rankings: Which teams will have the best defense this season?
- Trevor, start your engine: Jaguars’ temporary stadium could be NASCAR mecca
- Georgia-Florida rivalry set to move on campuses, but with a catch
In the scrimmage, Bortles completed 9-of-13 passes for 79 yards and a touchdown.
After the sharp outing, head coach Gus Bradley seemed rather pleased with the way his rookie is progressing as of late.
“The consistency, he’s starting to get it,” Bradley said. “So that’s good.”
Even Henne himself gave his competition the seal of approval.
“I thought he did a good job,” said starter Chad Henne, who completed 14 of 22 passes for 75 yards. “All his reads were correct, going to the right places with the ball, and that’s all you want with a young guy: Make sure that the ball’s going to the right place and making good decisions out there.”
It’ll definitely take a lot more than just one good performance in a scrimmage to vault Bortles over Henne, but it was a good way to get the conversation going.
Should Bortles continue to show consistent improvement that Bradley is looking for going forward, then we may have a controversy in Jacksonville come the end of the month.