By: Kevin Ruane
On Wednesday, representatives from 27 out of 32 NFL teams made their way to the Nicholson Fieldhouse where UCF’s top departing players held workouts. Even though this was a pro day for multiple players, all eyes were on Blake Bortles, and once again, he didn’t let an opportunity slip by.
Bortles threw 65 scripted passes to his former teammates, and got to show off his footwork in the pocket which was definitely a positive. Bortles thrived with short and intermediate passes, but missed some deep throws late in his session. Thankfully all his misses were long instead of short, which is a good sign. From the looks of his throws, it seemed that Bortles was very fatigued towards the end.
Since Bortles is such a raw talent, many scouts were impressed with his improved mechanics, especially his footwork. Bortles has been working with Chicago Bear’s quarterback Jordan Palmer, and he has helped fix many facets of Bortles’ game. Another area that seemed to be improved is his velocity. The consensus seems to be that Bortles has number one draft pick talent with untapped potential, but he still has a lot to learn.
With the Texans, Jaguars, Browns, Raiders, and Vikings all holding top 10 picks and needing a quarterback, it is hard to see Bortles falling out of the top 10. Also, it helps that Bortles capitalized on former Louisville quarterback Teddy Bridgewater’s subpar pro day. So far, it seems that Bortles can’t do much more to hear his name called first at Radio City Music Hall in New York City on May 8th.
