JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A few thoughts on the Jacksonville Jaguars' 44-17 loss to Indianapolis at EverBank Field.
What it means: The Blake Bortles era has begun in Jacksonville. Jaguars coach Gus Bradley said last week that there were no discussions among the coaches to bench starting quarterback Chad Henne and insert Bortles as the starter for Sunday’s game, but that was before a lackluster first half in which the offense gained just 55 yards and generated just two first downs, and Henne completed 4 of 7 passes for 33 yards. Bradley decided to go with the rookie from Central Florida in the hopes of providing a spark, and Bortles did that. The offense at least looked functional and managed to put a drive together that resulted in points. Now that the Jaguars have made the move, there is no turning back to Henne. They have committed themselves to riding it out with Bortles the rest of the season, no matter how ugly things become. The offensive line still needs work, they are without tight end Marcedes Lewis, and the receivers are a still work in progress, so it’s going to be a mess at times, but it makes no sense to go back to Henne.
Stock watch: The Jaguars' defense didn’t get much help from the offense in the first half, but the unit didn’t exactly stuff the Colts on their first few drives when the game was still close. Indianapolis gained 330 yards, including 91 rushing, and scored 30 points in the first half. Colts quarterback Andrew Luck completed 22 of 37 pass attempts, including a streak of 13 consecutive completions.
Tight end trouble: The Jaguars' troubling trend of struggling against tight ends continued on Sunday. Even with safety Johnathan Cyprien back in the lineup, the Colts' tight ends had a field day. Dwayne Allen, Coby Fleener, and Jack Doyle combined to catch 11 passes for 102 yards and two touchdowns. Entering Sunday’s game, the Jaguars had allowed opposing tight ends to catch 99 passes for 1,155 yards and 11 touchdowns in the previous six games.
Game ball: This sounds like the Bortles report, but his debut was really the only bright spot for the Jaguars. He completed 14 of 24 passes for 223 yards and two touchdowns. He started 1-for-5 on his first drive and went 13-for-19 the rest of the half. He also threw a pair of interceptions, including one on a terrible throw across his body that was intercepted and returned for a touchdown.
What’s next: If Bortles does indeed remain the Jaguars’ quarterback, he’s going to have a tough task ahead of him because the Jaguars travel cross-country to play at 4:05 p.m. ET next Sunday in San Diego.
