With the Jacksonville Jaguars placing quarterback Blaine Gabbert on injured reserve, it paves the way for Chad Henne to start the final six games of the season and state his case to be the starting quarterback for the 2013 season.
"I would say when the season was over with, I could probably say yes based on finishing the year that way," Jaguars head coach Mike Mularkey told reporters on Wednesday when asked if Henne could earn the start job.
It's a big opportunity for Henne to give himself a second chance at being a starter after leaving the Miami Dolphins as a disappointment. Henne was drafted in the second-round of the 2008 NFL Draft by the Dolphins and showed little promise his second season when he finally earned the starting job. Inconsistency however, plagued Henne through his 31 starts as the Dolphins quarterback, leaving with a record of 13-18 completing 60.7 percent of his passes, throwing for 7,114 yards with 31 touchdowns and 37 interceptions.
"Yeah, I mean it was a definitely inconsistency and you know I was young. You look at a four-year career and I really only played two years total," Henne told reporters on Wednesday. "So I’m still young as a quarterback, still young in this league and I’m still learning about myself and what I can do better."
About a week ago, I wrote that Blaine Gabbert would likely be the Jaguars starting quarterback in 2013. Given what's happened however, simply replace Gabbert's name with Chad Henne and the article reads exactly the same. The situation doesn't change much, if at all, just the person playing the position. If Henne shows out well, he could and should be the starting quarterback in 2013 even if the Jaguars draft a quarterback early.
Henne has a big opportunity in front of him, that a lot of quarterbacks don't get.