Going into the season, there weren’t great expectations for the team down in Jacksonville. They were coming in with a team that should be able to compete on paper, but how many times have we seen them come in with talent and fall flat. VP of Football Operations Tom Coughlin brought in DE Calais Campbell, who will likely win Defensive Player of the Year, and CB A.J. Bouye, who was named a Second-Team All-Pro. Jacksonville also added RB Leonard Fournette with the third overall pick out of LSU. There was talent. The question remained: could Blake Bortles do it?
The team answered that one. Jacksonville finished 10-6, first in the AFC South, and third in the AFC. They edged out Buffalo in a defensive battle in the Wild Card Round, before putting up 45 against Pittsburgh in the Divisional Round to send them to Foxborough. Bortles and the Jags fell short of their Super Bowl dream, falling to New England 24-20 after leading by 10 in the fourth quarter.
Now, Jags fans and football analysts are wondering what the next move is for Jacksonville, primarily at the QB position. Bortles is on his fifth-year option next year that would pay him a non-guaranteed $19 million. This means the Jaguars could move on from Bortles at absolutely no cost to them. The question then becomes: who is the best option?
Blake Bortles
Bortles is going into his fifth year with the Jacksonville Jaguars. He was the third overall pick and the first quarterback selected in the 2014 draft. One of the biggest knocks against the 25-year old has been that he’s prone to interceptions. Since 2014, he has the most interceptions of anyone in the league (64). The limited praise that he’s received has been due to decent yardage numbers, however, most of the numbers are inflated because of garbage time play. Blake has some ability. His play in the AFC Championship game showed me that he can dink-and-dunk pretty well. There is something there.
Kirk Cousins
Cousins’ situation is one that’s been followed closely by football fans around the league. He’s been franchise-tagged the last two seasons (the only QB to ever be franchised in back-to-back years) and is being paid as one of the best QBs in the league. We’ve all seen that he is talented, but has yet to make any big moves with the Redskins. The team has yet to ink the QB to a long-term deal, and it looks like he’s destined to hit the open market. Analysts everywhere are saying he could be worth upwards of $25 million annually. To me, that number is more than I’d be willing to go for a QB that hasn’t really taken over a team.
Teddy Bridgewater
Two years ago, Bridgewater tore his ACL in a practice during the pre-season. He missed all of 2016 and appeared as the back-up in Week 15 of 2017. The Vikings are going into an off-season where all three of their QBs (Case Keenum, Sam Bradford, and Bridgewater) will be free agents. The team refused Teddy’s fifth-year option due to the uncertainty with surrounding the injury. With how Case Keenum was able to lead this team, it would make sense for the Vikings to look to him to re-sign. Bridgewater was expected to be a solid option prior to the injury and could fit in somewhere on a cheaper contract.
Alex Smith
Last season, the Chiefs selected QB Pat Mahomes in the first-round of the draft. Kansas City have an out in Smith’s contract this year that would leave only $3.6 million is dead cap. At 33 years old, it’s clear Smith won’t be the future of the organization, but could provide some stability for a couple seasons. He’s garnered a reputation as a game-manager who doesn’t make many mistakes. This could be exactly what the Jaguars need. They could probably sign him for a couple years and look at some quarterbacks in upcoming drafts.
The Draft
This draft has four quarterbacks that are all expected to go in the first round. Josh Allen of Wyoming, Josh Rosen of UCLA, Sam Darnold of USC, and Baker Mayfield of Oklahoma. While there is talent in all of these guys, I’m not sure any of them will be great, and the only one that may be available at the Jaguars 29th overall selection is Mayfield. Louisville product Lamar Jackson may still be around at this position. I don’t know if Coughlin would take a guy who many see as a WR or RB in the NFL. I believe Jacksonville is better off going somewhere else with this selection.
MY TAKE:
In the end, I think the best option is honestly, Alex Smith. He could come in and work well with this offense. It would be a real change for Coughlin, who’s dealt with two QBs who are prone to mistakes in Eli Manning and Bortles over the last decade. Obviously, this is all predicated on whether or not the Chiefs move on from Smith, but it’s something that, realistically, could happen.
If Smith is doesn’t get released. I would stick with Bortles for another year and see what happens next year. Cousins is too much money, and Bridgewater is just as unpredictable as Bortles now.