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The Jacksonville Jaguars walked away without a victory for the fourth straight week on Sunday after a 33-14 loss to the San Diego Chargers. But at least fans got to see a glimmer of hope in future franchise quarterback Blake Bortles, right?
Not according to Pro Football Focus.
The player grading website rated Bortles' performance as the fourth-worst of the week so far, and with Tom Brady and Alex Smith not likely to get negative grades in tonight's Monday Night Football matchup that will probably stand for Week 4.
Pro Football Focus believed that Bortles earned a -3.6 rating and was in the same company as Geno Smith, E.J. Manuel, and Jay Cutler yesterday. A high percentage of completions (78.4% -- second only to Aaron Rodgers) wasn't enough to make up for two bad decisions that resulted in interceptions, and several others that resulted in tipped passes or near picks.
I guess I sort of get why Bortles received such a low grade. If you're trying to grade players as objectively as possible, and not considering that they're starting their first game or that their running game is dismal, then a negative grade might be applicable.
But even with an objectively bad grade, Bortles still brought hope to the Jaguars quarterbacking position with a strong arm, quick decisions, tendency to spread the ball around, and ability to turn a broken play into something.