How many games will Blake Bortles play for the Jaguars in 2014?

The Jacksonville Jaguars made it known prior to the 2014 NFL Draft that their plan at the quarterback position was to allow the player to sit and not rush them on to the field, no matter what round the player was drafted. As we now know, the Jaguars picked UCF quarterback Blake Bortles with the No. 3 overall pick, and the talk of him not being rushed on to the field has been consistent.

Do you think Blake Bortles will sit the entire 2014 season, however? Do you think Bortles starts Week 1 of the season? Do the Jaguars go to Bortles after a few weeks if Henne is struggling and the season is lost? Do they wait until after the bye week and evaluate where everything is?

Personally, I don't want to completely rule out Blake Bortles starting Week 1 of the season. I think if it's clear Bortles is ready and better than Chad Henne, they will start the better player. More realistically however, I'd lean towards Bortles sitting for the season until after the bye week. I think the talk right now of Bortles not starting is more to relieve the expectations and pressure, to just let him come to camp and get started without worrying about impressing everyone. If he earns it, then it's a bonus.

This gives the Jaguars nearly four months of work and evaluation with Bortles as the backup, cleaning up his footwork and mechanics and getting a handle on the Jaguars playbook. You need to consider that the Jaguars will have a re-vamped offensive line, especially the entire interior. You don't want to throw a rookie out there until you're comfortable with the interior line and keeping your quarterback relatively clean. It also gives the Jaguars an evaluation of where the team is. If they're essentially eliminated from the playoffs and Bortles is close to ready, it makes perfect sense to insert him in the lineup and start his clock.