ESPN AFC South blogger Paul Kuharsky made a great point that I know a lot of our commenters have brought up recently; Where are the screen passes?
ESPN Stats and Info says on passes that have traveled less than 10 yards in the air, Gabbert has completed just 60 of 120 throws with one touchdown and one interception. His passer rating (60.9) and QBR (27) in such circumstances are the worst numbers in the league among 34 quarterbacks that have logged substantial playing time.
He's 10-for-10 on screens for 92 yards with far better ratings -- a 39.3 QBR and a 105.0 passer rating.
Screens used to be a staple of the Jaguars offense, especially with Maurice Jones-Drew. They seemed to go by the wayside recently. In 2009, when Jones-Drew became the full time running back he had 53 receptions. In 2010, that number dropped to just 34, and this season he's on pace for just 24 receptions. An easy way to get Blaine Gabbert's completions up and also get some explosive passing plays are throwing screens to your best play maker, or even back up running back Deji Karim who is best in space.