Hello all, my name is Addison aka Bortal Kombat aka Bortortle. If you know anything about me, you know there are two things I root for during the NFL season…the Cowboys and Blake Bortles. Sure I root for other players on my fantasy team but I receive the most trash talk if Blake does not have a good game.
2015:
What a ride the 2015 season was. I benched Blake the first two weeks of the fantasy year and instead started Jay Cutler. After starting 0-2, I knew a change had to be made. From week 3 forward, I did not lose a single fantasy week, playoffs included, in which Blake started for my team (I lost one week when he had a bye). Championship. Glory. I had it all. And a bulk of my success was due to my Bortle/Arob connection. After finishing the year with 35 TDs , over 4,000 yards and as a high fantasy QB1, I had reached my nirvana. Since most QB’s suffer a sophomore slump (2015 was Blake’s sophomore year), I was sure Blake had arrived and that I had my QB of the future. But then…
2016:
The fantasy gods givith and then they taketh away. I say that with slight exaggeration since the season Blake had in 2016 from a fantasy perspective was not as bad as you may think. Blake finished with 23 TDs, 16 Ints, and didn’t crack the 4,000 yard mark as he did in 2016. Despite this, he still finished as a fantasy QB1(most of this success was garbage time but fantasy doesn’t care). The main difference was that he just looked terrible. Although he had 2 less INT’s and finished with a higher completion percentage in 2016, just on the eye test alone, his throws looked wildly inaccurate and he had questionable interceptions at terrible times. Blake threw his team out of games, and some wondered if he would be benched by the end of the year. This brings me to the main part of this blog…will Blake pick up where he left off, start the season poorly and lose his job? Or will 2015 Blake Bortles resurface, prove the nay sayers wrong and return him to fantasy glory. If you ask me, this is what I’ll be singing midway through 2017:
Guess whose back…..Back again…..Blake is back…..Tell a friend.
“Yo 50, you hear Blake is back?”
Blake Bortles will bounce back in 2017:
This is the simple response. I believe Blake is due to have a bounce back year and remain a QB1, but with job security. The reasons below are why I think Blake will be a better overall QB, thus removing the doubt that he will maintain his job. Do I think he’ll ever have a season as good as 2015? Probably not. They asked a lot from him and he succeeded. But I think he will be a more polished and consistent QB, who fantasy owners will feel safe having on their roster for years to come.
Faith by the Organization:
This is a small point, but a meaningful point in my eyes. During the off-season there were two questions surrounding the Jags in regards to Bortles; will they extend his 5th year option and will they draft a QB in the draft? Not extending or drafting a QB would show a clear sign of distrust for Blake, and would surely put doubt into his head and fantasy owners. Thankfully, the Jags did the exact opposite. They extend his 5th year option and opted not to draft a QB in the draft, but instead added weapons to further help his development. Call it a weak QB class, I call it a sign of faith. The added talent brings me to my next point.
Better O-line:
It’s not a secret that a great offensive line can take the ordinary and make them extraordinary (Ie:Dak). What better way to help a young, struggling QB, than to add quality offensive linemen to protect him? One under the radar move was the trade for Branden Albert. Albert was traded from Miami and is sure to bring an upgrade to the Jags offensive line. Albert was a pro bowler in 2015, and the lack of games (started 12/16) in 2016 likely prevented him from being one again. The Jags also drafted Cam Robinson. ALA-BAMA. For most of the months leading into the NFL draft, Cam was a first round talent mocked as high as 16 by Todd McShay at one point. The Jags were able to steal Cam in the second round, further adding an upgrade to the offensive line. A better O-line can obviously lead to a more stable run game, which is also extraordinarily helpful for a quarterback. Keeping a defense honest, and being able to sustain drives is crucial for both fantasy and real life QB play. With this bolstered O-line the Jags would benefit by having someone other than TJ Yeldon or Chris Ivory running for him. Luckily…
Leonard Fournette:
I’m not going to go deep into the talent that is Fournette. There’s countless articles, tapes, and podcast (EliteDynastyPodcast) that have discussed the talent Fournette is. The man is 240, ran a 4.51 40, and was selected #4 overall by the Jacksonville Jaguars. Taking a RB that early is typically frowned on and is highly risky given the uncertainty and shelf life of running backs. I believe the instant success of Zeke, along with the unreal hype that Fournette has, led to this selection… and boy do I LOVE this selection. Part of my happiness was relief they did not take Deshawn Watson or other QB’s rumored to be taken #4 overall. But the bulk of my happiness is continuing on what I said earlier. A QB can benefit so much from a stable run game. Will this take away passing attempts and possibly impact Bortles fantasy ceiling? Sure, I said before he’ll never repeat 2015, but I don’t care. Blake can still get his numbers but he won’t have the pressure of throwing 40+ times a game and being asked to do so much. Added bonus of the draft was the selection of DeDe Westbrook. Mo weapons, mo happiness. (Not to be confused with mo money mo problems). Once again for your enjoyment check out Fournette’s LSU highlights!
Working on Mechanics:
For some strange reason, Blakes throwing motion was noticeably longer and uglier. Those are some hard hitting detailed facts for you. But the truth of the matter is a major reason for the digression was due to his throwing motion which lead to major inaccurate throws, specifically in the deep ball. In 2015, Blake ranked 7th among QB’s in passes 20+ yards in the air. 2016 he was dead last. This was especially hurtful for Allen Robinson, whose 25/45 go route throws deemed catchable dropped to 10/42 in 2016. Allen Robinson is an elite WR and he and Blake need to be in sync in order for a resurgence of Bortles to occur. 50% of Arob’s catches in 2015 were from a Go route. This dropped to 21% in 2016. Blake NEEDS to improve his deep ball accuracy and I believe his off season work, and fine tuning his mechanics will lead to an improvement.
Gus Bradley Fired:
News flash, Gus Bradley STINKS. Among coaches with 50 games, Gus Bradley’s winning percentage was only better than Bert Bell who coached in 1941. 76 years! Many people believe Gus Bradley was a poor fit for Blake and this organization, and that showed by how poorly this team performed during the time he was head coach. With two games left in the season the Jaguars fired Gus Bradley. Let’s take a look at the last two games of the season for Blake:
Week 16: 26/38 325 yards 1 TD 0 INT
Weel 17: 25/39 301 yards 1 TD 0 INT
Hmmmmmmm
I believe a new regime, new coach, new GM, and new players will be GREAT for Blake and give him and his balding head the fresh start in 2017 he needs.
Conclusion:
Listen, I don’t have all the hard hitting statistics and analytics. I’m very biased and am a huge fan of Blake and everything he stands for from football to Wikipedia. We’ve seen him be great, we’ve seen him be bad. From fantasy star to almost benched. QB 1 back to back years, but his spot on this team will be the huge question mark going into 2017 and the weeks following it. So with that I ask….will the real Blake Bortles please stand up?
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