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The general consensus was clear and amiable on Friday night:
Blake Bortles looked pretty good in the first preseason game of the season.
When you rewind each of Bortles' 15 throws on the night, some underlying takeaways start to jump out at you as well.
Greg Olson's offense fits Blake's QB make-up. This doesn't mean Bortles will certainly uncover success, or even that he'll progress as a passer in the long run. But the astonishing lack of scheme errors and wasted 1st half timeouts -- in the first game with a brand new offense, mind you -- emphasizes a more fluid offense with less thinking and more playing.
The Jaguars used 20+ formations Friday night, and the offense uncovered some form of success in almost every single one of these formations. Three of Bortles' four incompletions were blatant drops, and the 4th was thrown a tad high under pressure. Blake finished 11-of-15 for 118 yards in about a quarter and a half of play.
Though you might assume the opposite at this point, I'm really not trying to pump sunshine. Fans can overanalyze a single preseason game without my encouragement. The barefaced truth is that there was visible improvement Friday night, both in offensive scheme and QB competence. When you break the game down play by play, this idea is only illuminated.
Take a look for yourself. We vined every single Blake Bortles throw from Friday night's preseason opener. Enjoy!
Nice bootleg to get into a rhythm on 2nd play of game. Julius Thomas injured on the play. https://t.co/8hqV2GjMqF
— Big Cat Country (@BigCatCountry) August 16, 2015
Good pass, good placement, Hurns drops it. https://t.co/wb0HJWRF0I
— Big Cat Country (@BigCatCountry) August 16, 2015
Sit route. Easy pickup. More weapons to spread the field = more easy completions like this for Marcedes https://t.co/xsZGu1u892
— Big Cat Country (@BigCatCountry) August 16, 2015
Tons of time to throw, bounces through his reads, zips one to A-Rob. Move those chains https://t.co/7YDfO0t8zh
— Big Cat Country (@BigCatCountry) August 16, 2015
Trips screen - extension of the run. Joeckel shoots out, drops and rolls like he's on fire. Nice block by Benn https://t.co/8Slgk1rOIv
— Big Cat Country (@BigCatCountry) August 16, 2015
Olson using Blake's legs again. Getting a chunk back on 1st and 20. Hurns holds onto it this time https://t.co/3jfXOO8v9L
— Big Cat Country (@BigCatCountry) August 16, 2015
GREAT job stepping up. Escapes free rusher. Misses Harbor high, could have been a TD https://t.co/zjh6H38jW6
— Big Cat Country (@BigCatCountry) August 16, 2015
Gerhart slips out. Like Gus always says, if you can't catch it the 1st time, catch it the 2nd and 3rd time. https://t.co/XLpW3LjUJQ
— Big Cat Country (@BigCatCountry) August 16, 2015
Toby Gerhart -- the Screen Machine ™ https://t.co/8l2Pifkiq2
— Big Cat Country (@BigCatCountry) August 16, 2015
Steelers giving Jags the underneath routes. Easy pick-up by Washington https://t.co/XBCPi1Nvqc
— Big Cat Country (@BigCatCountry) August 16, 2015
WHY HARBOR WHYYYY. PERFECT pass. Easy TD, dropped. https://t.co/4o75iADznj
— Big Cat Country (@BigCatCountry) August 16, 2015
Right back to Harbor on the next play. Olson showcasing his TEs, just like we thought he would https://t.co/1EYU1FM7GY
— Big Cat Country (@BigCatCountry) August 16, 2015
Another . Great throw, 27-yard gain by Arrelious Benn https://t.co/dEUJcJDXkO
— Big Cat Country (@BigCatCountry) August 16, 2015
Dump off, dropped by Pierce... https://t.co/q8rsvysKwv
— Big Cat Country (@BigCatCountry) August 16, 2015
Another dump off to Pier- OMG ✈️✈️✈️ Blake dives into endzone on next play https://t.co/ONZxHpyQrE
— Big Cat Country (@BigCatCountry) August 16, 2015