Draft Rewind 2014: Blake Bortles, Jacksonville Jaguars

What Ourlads NFL Scouting Services said about BLAKE BORTLES: Central Florida, 6050 232 4.93. Junior entry. Three-year starter. Started making noise in 2013 after two back-to-back non-conference games versus Penn State and South Carolina where he demonstrated NFL skills. He continued his upward climb to the NFL draft by beating conference rival Louisville in a comeback win that launched the Knights to the conference championship. Bortles then capped off his junior year by leading the underdog UCF to a win in the Fiesta Bowl over Baylor. The big right-handed signal caller is not a one year wonder, but rather an ascending player who bookended his sophomore season with a strong junior campaign. He is a young player who needs pro development. He shows good patience on all three levels of passing – short, medium, and long. Can throw the touch pass fade or touch over the linebackers. Can still make a strong throw while being hit. Extends a play and has good accuracy on the move. Reads pressure and blitz packages well. He gets the ball out of his hand quickly with a high release. Has experience taking snaps from under center. At his best in the up-tempo packages where he can get into a rhythm. Central Florida runs a conservative and structured run-based pro offense that includes the zone read. Many of his passes were thrown behind the line of scrimmage. He can make all the downfield throws. Good leadership qualities. He is not a finished product but has a strong pattern of success, a good work ethic, and football intelligence. An offensive coordinator can mold Bortles and his unpolished ability into a future star. All arrows are pointing up. A prototype looking drop back NFL quarterback. He stands tall in the pocket. He ranked 21st in the country in total offense with 296.4 yards per game. He completed 67.8% of his passes and averaged 9.4 yards per attempt. Had several responsibilities at the line of scrimmage. Keeps feet alive on roll out plays. Can scramble for positive yards. Steps up into the pocket and his passes. Throws several play action passes off the run fakes. Will hang in the pocket and take a hit while trying to make a play. Cuts the ball loose quickly on timing routes. Confident in his arm. Needs work in every phase of his quarterback fundamentals including ball placement. Arm strength is good. Will throw the ball into traffic when he doesn’t have a play at times. 2013 stats: 259/382, 3581 passing yds, 67.8%, 25 TD, 9 INT. Ball velocity 56 mph. OSR:6/18. First round. (A-32 7/8, H-9 3/8, SS-4.21, VJ-32.5).