Getty ImagesJaguars General Manager Dave Caldwell met with reporters today to discuss the firing of coach Gus Bradley, and expressed the usual sentiments of teams that fire coaches because they’re bad.
As owner Shad Khan did in last night’s statement, Caldwell expressed confidence the Jaguars could turn things around quickly.
And while they’ve invested in quarterback Blake Bortles, Caldwell said that doesn’t mean Bortles has a mandate with whoever the next coach is, saying there were no untouchables on the roster.
“I still believe in Blake very much,” Caldwell said, via Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union. “The head coach will have a lot of input into who the QB will be.”
They’ll also have a quick decision to make, as the decision on Bortles’ fifth-year option is due in May. So at a time when they’re deciding who will lead the team from the sidelines, they’ll have to decide whether they want to invest another $19 million in Bortles.
Well damn, if I had a damn near 1:1 ratio with pick 6s to wins, I would hope my job wasn’t safe.
Who on earth would ever think Bortles was untouchable? No wonder they are perennial losers.
Get rid of “the tongue”.
Packers go from Favre to Rodgers
Jags go from Gabbert to Bortles. smh
You should have fired both Bradley and Bortles last night after the loss. Let the market figure Bortles value next season because he isn’t a starting quarterback anywhere but Cleveland or San Francisco by his numbers over the last 4 years……
The Tebow curse continues in Jacksonsville.
Wins are untouchable in Jacksonville too…
What he is saying is that there are no 19 million dollar sacred cows.
Honest question:
if you were Caldwell and your job is on the line: how would you handle the quarterback situation?
A. Would you trade for another team’s back-up?
B. Is there a franchise-caliber qb prospect in the draft?
C. Would you assume Bortles is better than either option and pick up his 5th year?
D. Would you sign a Nick Foles/Case Keenum-esq free agent and hope he hasn’t already hit his ceiling?
I think you exaggerate the importance of the deadline for picking up the fifth year. If I remember correctly when this issue came up with RGIII a couple years ago, that fifth year is guaranteed only for injury. You could still cut him after the fourth year and owe only the prorated amount of his bonus against the cap, assuming he doesn’t get hurt.
You don’t need a franchise quarterback. The Ravens won Super Bowls with jump ball Joe and that guy who tries to be a pre-game commentator now who wasn’t even good enough for me to remember his name. You need a good defense and a guy at quarterback who doesn’t throw to the other team. I mean, did you see the QB play from the Broncos last year? Not franchise level. But they protected the ball and did enough to not hurt the team.
Bortles has the talent but does he have what it takes sloshing around in his skull to stop throwing the ball to opposing teams? I think it’s worth keeping him around to find out while drafting a 2nd to 4th round QB to groom just in case he can’t get his mind right.
Oh, but to be an untalented QB in 2016, and know you have enough millions so as to not ever have to work again. Insane.
The GM that picked Bortles still believes in him. Amazing !!!!!
laces out says:
Dec 19, 2016 2:44 PM
Honest question:
if you were Caldwell and your job is on the line: how would you handle the quarterback situation?
A. Would you trade for another team’s back-up?
B. Is there a franchise-caliber qb prospect in the draft?
C. Would you assume Bortles is better than either option and pick up his 5th year?
D. Would you sign a Nick Foles/Case Keenum-esq free agent and hope he hasn’t already hit his ceiling?
——————————–
E. Run the Wishbone
laces out says:
Dec 19, 2016 2:44 PM
Honest question:
if you were Caldwell and your job is on the line: how would you handle the quarterback situation?
Pick up retreads and 2nd hand guys while investing draft picks on the o-line and skill positions until there IS a franchise quality QB in the draft.
Grab that QB and then he’s on a decent team instead of blowing up everything and putting a QB on a garbage squad.
Maybe – in the mean time of building the TEAM and not just one position – you find a guy that excels given quality talent to work with.
Jimmy G. and Josh McDaniels combo.
Why is Caldwell still there? That is not a good football team.
I’d say a lot of them are regarded as untouchable by other teams in the league.
Henne should start the last 2 weeks. If you saw him play with Blackmon when he wasn’t injured, imagine what he could do with this receiving group.
Gus Bradley is a class act I wish she would’ve succeeded in Jacksonville but he won’t coach again somewhere come on over to the Jets
Meant to say he will coach again somewhere
Checkdown Chad is not the option. The QB for this team is in the draft or A J McCarron.
I said Bortles sucked two years ago. But of course was ridiculed by local media, until CLEARLY he needed to go. Lol.
The GM shouldn’t be untouchable either. That offensive line is pathetic. They couldn’t block Martha Stewart. he can say all he wants about having a team with enough talent to get in the playoffs but that offensive line is just awful.