Melina Vastola-USA TODAY Sports
The Blaine Gabbert era is quickly being hijacked by Chad Henne. This is despite the fact that Henne typically gives the keys back after taking any starting quarterback job during his career. The best bet here is that neither will be the Jacksonville Jaguars starting quarterback come 2014.
When Gabbert was announced the starter for the preseason opener against the Miami Dolphins, I had at least some bit of Gabbert optimism remaining in me. It wasn’t quite the level of “apologist” but I wanted to see him get a chance to shine in year three, with him coming out of college as a project quarterback and all.
His coach also showed enthusiasm upon naming Gabbert the preseason Week 1 starter, and his comments now feel like centuries ago following Gabbert’s 5-for-10, 19-yard performance against Miami that included an interception.
“I think that he’s really shown a lot of poise,” Jags Coach Gus Bradley said of Gabbert upon the starting announcement, via USA Today Sports. “I think he handles situations that have been presented to him in practice. They both have done some really good things, both have made some really good progress.
“Now, are they there yet? No, and I hope they would both answer it the same way. We just felt like with Blaine, with what he’s done the last couple days in practice and how he’s responded, we decided to give him the nod.”
Alas, I’m of the opinion that Henne has proven over the years not to be a starting-caliber quarterback and that the Jags’ 2013 campaign amounts to a tryout for 2014, so why not continue trotting Gabbert out there — in the hopes that there is some real reason he was top-ten draft pick. At least for the first couple weeks of the regular season, when there’s almost nothing to lose.
Thomas Emerick is a Senior Writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @ThomasEmerick, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google
