Why does everyone hate Blake Bortles?

You’re probably reading this headline and dying inside from irony, but hear me out. What’s the deal with all these players actively making fun of Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles? It’s the most wild thing I can remember, as far as players taking open and specific shots at an active player.

The latest comes from Tennessee Titans safety Kevin Byard, who picked off Bortles in their Week 17 matchup.

“It’s a playoff game, so it’s not like it’s the preseason where I can go out there, ‘Oh, it’s Brady,’ and I’m chillin,” Byard told Jason Wolff, via the Tennessean. “This is a playoff game. So I don’t really care if it was Joe Montana. You know what I’m saying? I’m trying to go out there and win the game. I want to make him look like Blake Bortles if I can and try to catch a couple picks. Tom Brady is a great quarterback, but it’s a playoff game. I’m not really looking at it like that.”

I can’t remember seeing something like this since the days of Tim Tebow.

We’ve seen shots from Earl Thomas, Jadeveon Clowney, Michael Bennett, Vontaze Burfict, Cam Jordan and more. I’m not going to sit here and pretend like I outwardly disagree with the comments the players made, because I’ve probably been the most critical of Bortles, but it’s a whole different story when players say it about another active player.

For those of you who have a younger sibling, it’s starting to feel like that unwritten rule that you’re permitted to pick on them, but Lord help anyone else who does.

Truly though, I’d love to know what Blake Bortles did to live rent free in all these player’s heads.