JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Jacksonville Jaguars general manager Dave Caldwell believes in Blake Bortles. It’s going to be some time before Tom Coughlin does.
The Jaguars’ new executive vice president of football operations had little to say about Bortles during an introductory news conference Thursday morning, other than a generic statement that Bortles is the Jaguars’ quarterback.
Caldwell said that’s because Coughlin hasn’t yet dived into evaluating current personnel.
"I think when you sit down and watch the video, I think you're going to see a lot of good things that Blake does," Caldwell said. "You're going to see things where he needs to improve on. I don't think there's going to be any selling. I think it's going to be an evaluation, a process.
“I know [head coach] Doug [Marrone] and myself feel comfortable with where Blake is and haven't had a whole lot of time to talk about Tom about it."
Marrone stuck with Bortles as the Jaguars’ starter during his two-game stint as interim head coach, and Bortles played his two best games of the season. He completed 66 percent of his passes for 626 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions. He also caught a touchdown pass. The 24-year-old completed better than 64 percent of his passes in each of those final two games after doing so just once in the previous 14.
Even so, Marrone said the same thing Coughlin did when asked about Bortles: "Blake is our quarterback."
Marrone also said Thursday was not the proper time to discuss personnel and that he, Caldwell and Coughlin will be going over the roster in the near future.
After a breakout 2015 season, Bortles struggled in 2016. He completed 58.9 percent of his passes for 3,905 yards and 23 touchdowns with 16 interceptions (actually the fewest of his three seasons). He has the most turnovers (63) and second-most interceptions (51) of any quarterback since entering the league in 2014.
Bortles also has the same number of victories (11) as he does pick-sixes.
That’s why Caldwell said the day after firing Gus Bradley he wouldn’t force the new head coach to stick with Bortles as Jaguars starter even though Caldwell himself is still committed to the player he drafted third overall in 2014.
"I would encourage a different kind of perspective [on Bortles]," Caldwell said Dec. 19. "I want the right perspective. I know we're very close to him and we hold him in high regard in terms of what we think his capabilities are. I still believe he has a very high ceiling, but I want to be realistic about it, too. I think that a new head coach will bring a different perspective about what he believes.
"When you sit down and you evaluate all of the struggles and you evaluate all of the plays ... Blake, yeah, he does have to play better, but we also have to play better around him, too."
Caldwell said Bortles was discussed during interviews with head-coaching candidates but "it wasn’t anything major."
Coughlin, who has final say on personnel matters, likely will make up his mind about Bortles over the next several weeks. He might not say anything publicly, but if the Jaguars chase a quarterback in free agency or draft one in the first few rounds, that will indicate Coughlin at least has doubts.
Bortles is the Jaguars’ quarterback right now, but that might not last.