Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles likely will sit out his entire rookie season. Jaguars coach Gus Bradley admitted the No. 3 pick of the 2014 NFL draft isn't expected to see any significant playing time this season as the backup for veteran Chad Henne, who will remain the incumbent starter.
Jacksonville surprised many by selecting Bortles third overall in the draft. While the Jaguars hope Bortles will develop into their eventual franchise quarterback, second-year coach Bradley sounded adamant that the plan is for Bortles to remain a backup this season.
"We really feel comfortable with (Henne) coming back with another year in the system," Bradley told the NFL Network on Tuesday, via ESPN. "I think it gave us flexibility. When Blake was there available for us, we really wanted to capture that opportunity.
"(And) we do feel good about where Blake's at, but we feel like this time that he has under Chad, a year to develop, will be really good for him in the end result. So our plan is to stay really strong with this."
It's become rare for rookie quarterbacks -- let alone rookie quarterbacks taken with a top three pick -- to be given time to develop and adjust to the pros. While not being thrown into the fire immediately could help Bortles' maturation, Bradley could face pressure to start Bortles over Henne if the Jaguars appear headed for another 4-12 season.
Henne played in 15 games last season and threw for 3,241 yards, 13 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. There'll be even more emphasis on the passing game this year with the loss of star running back Maurice Jones-Drew, who signed in March with the Oakland Raiders .
Bortles played three seasons at Central Florida and finished with 7,598 passing yards, 56 touchdowns and 19 interceptions.