One of, if not the biggest storylines of the Jaguars 2016 season was the regression of Blake Bortles. While Blake certainly made some poor reads and decisions through out the campaign many believed that his throwing motion and footwork were mostly to blame.
And with good reason. Prior to the 2015 season Bortles spent his time training with the 3DQB trainers in California. Tom House, Adam Dedaux, and the rest of the 3DQB crew are widely regarded as some of the best in the business. After an offseason of training with the QB Gurus Blake had a fantastic sophomore campaign, shattering the Jaguars record for TD passes in a season with 35. Following his impressive second season in the league Bortles decided to stay in Jacksonville for the offseason to work with his receivers and keep building chemistry. While Bortles did this with the best of intentions - it ended up being a colossal mistake. In 2016 Bortles mechanics started to wane as early as training camp, but things really went south after the first game of the season. His mechanics were broken: EXHIBIT A: Bortles drops the ball all the way to his hip and extends it backwards - this is not what a quarterback is supposed to look like
To the dismay of many it appears the Jaguars are determined to let Blake Bortles start again in 2017. Thankfully for Jaguars fans everywhere Bortles is working hard this offseason to fix his throwing mechanics. He's back in California working with 3DQB again and he's already looking more like the 2015 version of Bortles than the train wreck we all saw in 2016.
Things are really looking good in terms of his footwork, mechanics, and accuracy: EXHIBIT B - The ball stays high and tight, he plants off his back foot, and follows through on his throw to deliver an accurate and pretty pass.
This is a GREAT sign for the Jaguars and Blake Bortles. While it's only March and Bortles doesn't have a live pass rush or defensive coverage to read, it is still a solid sign for the team moving forward.
It's just shorts and a practice field, but it's a start.
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