Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles was pulled from Sunday’s practice after throwing a pair of interceptions because, per coach Doug Marrone, it looked like he had a tired arm.
Bortles has been back to a full workload the last two days and said on Tuesday that he has taken more reps this summer than in any other year, but that his arm feels fine despite that workload. While the work hasn’t left him feeling worn down, it also hasn’t resulted in the kind of consistency that the Jaguars would love to see from their quarterback.
Bortles didn’t throw any interceptions during the joint practice with the Buccaneers, but missed several throws including one that elicited a negative response from wide receiver Allen Robinson. Bortles said there are things he’d like to improve, something Marrone agreed with while noting the inconsistent play he’s seen at practice.
“There are some throws that I’ll think, ‘Hey, that’s a good throw,’ and then I’ll be like, ‘That’s a horse-s--- throw,’” Marrone said, via the Florida Times-Union. “At the end of the day, I’m just trying to get more and get better. So we rested him the other day. I thought he came back and really had no issues for these two days. That was the goal was to get him out here and get him all that work. I think he’s gotten good work, and I think that him along with the rest of the guys on offense, I want those guys to get better.”
There comes a point where you have to wonder if flaws in a player are a feature that will be there forever or a bug that can be erased to make for a smoother run. For Bortles, this season is shaping up as his final chance to convince the Jaguars of the latter and the summer hasn’t provided much evidence that things will turn out that way.