MONDAY MORNING QUARTERBACK

Just to the AFC Chamionship game.

 

After beating the Steelers again? I guess the bright side is Bortles can only embarrass the Steelers once in the upcoming season? This guy is not that bad, and again he won't have to carry the team, just manage games, make the occasional big throw and not turn the ball over in his own zone. Even if he does, the D is good enough to hold opponents to 3 more often than not.

 

When Bortles and the rest of the Jaguars are watching the playoffs at home next January we can reopen this discussion.

 

I wouldn't call Bortles a joke at all. He may be inconsistent from week to week, but he has had success. Last year is the proof.

 

We won’t have to ever watch him play for a championship.

 

Gidion, answer your phone.

Trent Dilfer would like to have a word with you.

 

Dilfer played on one of the top five defensive teams of all time. The jaguars ain’t got the defense to carry Bortles sorry ass.

 

It carried him past Pittsburgh last year.

 

Twice

 

Everyone knows that they were looking ahead to the Patriots during the stupid playoff game. Roethlisberger was still getting in tune to the straight and narrow when they played during the regular season. I’m going on record right now that the jaguars don’t even make the playoffs this season.

 

Looks like everyone forgot to tell the Jaguars.

 

In Pittsburgh

 

Bottom Line Jags beat Steelers 2x last year. Dont talk to me about talent, dont talk to me about on paper, at the end of the day the Jags broke it off in the Steelers twice. Maybe next year the Steelers will keep their shit together and remember the opponent on the the field is more important than the one you might face next week.

 

Jameis Winston confirms suspension, apologizes to Uber driver

Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston confirmed Thursday that he has been suspended for the first three games of the 2018 season after the NFL’s investigation into claims that he groped an Uber driver in March 2016.

Winston released a statement about the suspension via Ian Rapoport of NFL Media that begins with an apology to the Uber driver that runs counter to past claims that the accusations against him were false. Winston also writes that he has given up drinking before moving on to offer apologies to the Buccaneers organization, his teammates and fans.

“First and foremost, I would like to say I’m sorry to the Uber driver for the position I put you in. It is uncharacteristic of me and I genuinely apologize. In the past 2 1/2 years my life has been filled with experiences, opportunities and events that have helped me grow, mature and learn, including the fact that I have eliminated alcohol from my life.

I know I have to hold myself to a higher standard on and off the field and that I have a responsibility to my family, community, and teammates to live above the platform with which God has blessed me. I apologize to my teammates, the Buccaneers organization and fans for letting them down and for not being able to be out there for the first three games of the season. Although I am disappointed in the NFL’s decision, I understand the NFL’s process, and I embrace this as an opportunity to take advantage of the resources available to help me achieve the goals that I have for myself.

I now look forward to putting this behind me and I will continue to work hard every day to be a positive influence in my community and be the best person, teammate and leader I can be.”

Winston will miss games against the Saints, Eagles and Steelers while serving his suspension. (PFT)

 

Jameis Winston faces a ban from the NFL with any more future violations according to report on PFT.

The NFL’s public statement on Jameis Winston‘s three-game suspension suggested that Winston could be one violation of the personal-conduct policy away from a lifetime ban.

“In addition, a future violation of the Personal Conduct Policy will result in more substantial discipline, including a potential ban from the NFL,” the league’s statement said.

Of course, the NFL also said after the Ray Rice fiasco that a six-game suspension would be the baseline for domestic violence or sexual assault, and yet Winston got only three games even though the NFL’s own findings concluded that Winston touched an Uber driver “in an inappropriate and sexual manner without her consent.” So the NFL doesn’t always follow through on warnings about the severity of its suspensions. And the league has used that language in other letters to players suspended under the personal conduct policy, including Ezekiel Elliott last year.

Still, the words “potential ban” show just how serious a situation this is for Winston and the Buccaneers. A former first overall pick in the draft, a player who might be one of the league’s brightest stars for the next 15 years, also might be just one bad act away from never playing in the NFL again.

 

Josh McCown: We have the “right guy” in Sam Darnold

Josh McCown is one of the many quarterbacks to start for the Jets as they’ve looked for long-term success at the position, but it doesn’t sound like he thinks the team will have to continue searching.

McCown said at minicamp in June that rookie Sam Darnold was getting better every day and he continued to drop praise on his younger teammate during an interview on Sirius XM NFL Radio this weekend.

“With Sam, we have the right guy, he’s wired the right way, he loves the game, he asks the right questions and he’s willing to work … That’s the foundation, you have to have that,” McCown said.

Darnold is set to start training camp as the No. 3 man on the depth chart behind McCown and Teddy Bridgewater, but neither head coach Todd Bowles nor offensive coordinator Jeremy Bates has been reluctant to say that could change if Darnold impresses this summer. With camp starting on July 29, it won’t be too much longer before we start to find out if McCown’s right about the rookie. (PFT)

 

Rams QB Jared Goff says he struggled to find an edge as a rookie

Los Angeles Rams quarterback Jared Goff made enormous strides during his second year in the NFL. He made it to the Pro Bowl as an alternate after passing for 3,804 yards with 28 touchdowns with just seven interceptions as the Rams made the postseason for the first time since 2004.

While there are many things that could have influenced Goff in his improvement, Goff credits at least some of his growth from finding an edge again.

According to Alden Gonzalez of ESPN.com, Goff said during a Q&A session on Monday that he struggled to find an edge during his rookie campaign.

Goff said he had an edge in college at the University of California-Berkeley because he wasn’t a highly touted prospect coming out of high school in Kentfield, Calif. After being the No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, it was a more challenging sense to create. Having struggled during his rookie season, Goff again has reason to feel doubted and the edge was back.

Of course, that’s not the only reason Goff improved significantly last season. Head coach Sean McVay helped institute an offense that played well to Goff’s strengths. He was supported by a stellar year from the team’s defense and running back Todd Gurley, and Robert Woods, Sammy Watkins and Cooper Kupp gave him a more dynamic receiving corps to work with.

If Goff needs to find that edge to succeed, he may have a bit more trouble finding it this season given the success of his sophomore campaign. However, there are now expectations heaped on the Rams to win the NFC West and make an extended playoff run. That might be all Goff needs to find that little bit extra to carry him this season. (PFT)
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Goff should not need be worried about finding an edge... good football team with plenty to prove. He needs to just keep grinding and let the chips fall where they may.

 

Blake Bortles: Criticism has never really bothered me

After winning the AFC South and advancing to the AFC Championship Game last season, the outside view of the Jaguars is quite different this July than it was a year ago.

Quarterback Blake Bortles admitted as much during an appearance on NFL Network when he said the Jaguars aren’t going to surprise anyone this season and will “definitely get” the best from their opponents every week as a result.

The view of Bortles hasn’t completely changed, however. Some still question whether the quarterback is good enough to take the Jaguars where they want to go. Bortles said such critiques aren’t something he spends a lot of time thinking about after spending four years playing for George O’Leary at UCF because he knows he can’t stop anyone from airing those thoughts.

“There’s times when I deserve it,” Bortles said. “And I don’t have a problem admitting that I didn’t play good. And I don’t have a problem with people critiquing me when I don’t play good. It’s just never really bothered me. I love going to work every day. I love playing football, and the locker room, so why let something affect me that I have no control over?”

Outside doubts about Bortles didn’t stop Jacksonville from signing him to a contract extension and there’s been a lot more positivity about the quarterback from the organization than there was last year. Should Bortles back that up on the field this fall, he may be able to avoid questions about his critics at this time next year. (PFT)

 

Case Keenum was honored that a Hall of Fame quarterback wanted him

Case Keenum was never a highly sought commodity in his NFL career. He entered the league as an undrafted free agent, has been cut twice, once got traded for a seventh-round draft pick, and finally became a starter last year because two other quarterbacks were hurt.

So when Keenum became a free agent this offseason and a Hall of Fame quarterback in John Elway wanted to make him the Broncos’ starter, he finally felt like he’d made it.

“When my phone rang and it was John Elway telling me to come sign with the Broncos, it feels pretty good, especially as a kid growing up an Elway fan,” Keenum said on Sirius XM NFL Radio, via Nicki Jhabvala of The Athletic. “We actually talked first when I got to Denver. It was great. Walking into his office there and it’s John Elway behind the desk. It’s Big John. He’s definitely a presence, obviously one of the greats that ever played the game. There’s a lot of tradition and history there, and a lot of it is because of him. It’s a cool atmosphere, a cool organization, and I’m just happy to be a part of it.”

The last time Elway signed a free agent to be the Broncos’ starting quarterback, he hit a home run with Peyton Manning. It may not be realistic to think Keenum can have that kind of success in Denver, but Elway is confident he’s found the right man again — and Keenum appreciates a Hall of Famer having confidence in him. (PFT)

 

Drew Brees, Tom Brady in a race toward Petyon Manning’s touchdown record

Heading into the 2018 season, Saints quarterback Drew Brees and Patriots quarterback Tom Brady are tied on the career passing touchdowns list: Both have thrown exactly 488 touchdowns in their career.

That puts them 51 behind Peyton Manning’s all-time career record of 539, and over the next couple years they’ll race to see which one gets there first.

It’s unlikely that either will break Manning’s record in 2018: Brady’s career high in touchdown passes is 50, and Brees’ career high is 46, so it will probably be 2019 before either one of them gets to Manning.

But assuming they both play at least two more years and both stay healthy, they should both top Manning’s touchdown mark. They could even find themselves in a situation where they’re both breaking each other’s record on a regular basis. That would be reminiscent of the 1983 Major League Baseball season, when pitchers Nolan Ryan and Steve Carlton both broke the previous career strikeout record, and then proceeded to trade the lead back and forth 14 times over the course of that season.

The Brees-Brady touchdown race might just become the hottest story in the NFL, but probably not until 2019. (PFT)